The eagle royal dragoons bound books the eagle 1909 compressed by RHG/D Reg Sec

“THE

EAGLE.”

Volume "I, 1909.

INDEX. Assault-at-Arms, The Regimental . . . . ._ .. .. .. “ “ “ The Divisional .. Army, Our Standing. ArmyGup, The. . Big Game Shooting, Reminiscences of Oorporals Annual Shoot Cricket ... Competition, The deLisle Sword Divisional Assaultat- Arms . . .. Detachment Letter

Eighty Years Serv1ce1nThe Royal Dragoons Football ...

....... 106.

“Felix Leopardus’

27, 42, 62, 131, 132,159. .

-b7-

Historical Record. . ......... 7, 21, 33, 52 69, 82,100,117,133, 150,164,182. Horse Management in India .. .89,102,137,'158,170, 185 Bearhoth Sides .. .. . . .....189. How we spent ou1 Holidays........ ..... .. ....190. Inspections .. . . 8,119. Incident, An Unrecmded 140 KadirCup 1909, The... 157 Lucknow Polo Tournament.......... ”25,192. Long Distance Patrol. 59. Letters toTheEditor... MonthlyNotes ...........

. 86, 98, 99, 189. ‘, 17, 30, 49, 65, 79. 95,112,127,144,161,176.

“Muttia” ..... .. .. ...................... ”165,188 Old Comrades Dinner........... .9164. Over Eighty Years Servicein The Royal Dragoons 106 Polo Lucknow. 192 “ Inter-Regimental 38. “ Junior’l‘ournament 128. Patrol,LongDista.nce .. 59 Queen Victoria’s Keys .. ........................ 74. 16. 28,48,6278,93,110,126,143, 160,175,195. . . RegimentalGazette. RegimentalAssault—at—Arms . . 4.5 Regimental Dinner. . .

Robertson Captain William Metcalfe...................... Reminiscencesof BigGameShooting Rube, 2nd LieutzE A. R. . South African Letters...... Sergeants’ Mess Notes Sporting Reminiscences ..... herioComicAdventure, A ......

Squadrons’ Mounted Sports...” Shiliar ,. Sports .. Standing 111111;,0111..... Strategy,Lessons in .. Sentry, AWhitehall Thomas Atkins .... Unrecorded, Incident An ...........

.105.

.164. 12, 23, 36,55, 70, ”.84 108,120,135,152,169184. 13, 26 46,62,77, 92,109,124, 141,158, 173, 194. .............. 40, 71. .4.3

..44.

. .

7..4, 91,120 ..76.

(the ~agle. A MONTHLY CHRONICLE OF THE ROYAL DRAGOONS. “SPECTEMUR AGENDO.” FRIDAY. JANUARY 15TH, EDITORIAL NOTICES.

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ﬁnances permit. While there is no fear, of course, that our Regimental paper will ever

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1903).

in Hegy'hu'nml «in “Milan/r50];

«a

“1* be: I0 acknowledge with ilmnlcs the receipt of the follow.

ins: contemporaries .— " St. (,lcors'c’s Gazette." " The White Lancer." " The X. R. H.

Gazette."

be admitted that so far The Eagle is only selfsupporting, and this means that improvements such as the inclusion of photographs and sketches of interest, and a greater number of pages of news and articles, cannot be made. Printing in India, like many other things, costs something like twice as much as it does at home, and, roughly. 300 copies mustbe disposed ofrbefore the cost of publication of one number is realised. Yet, sad to say, of the 400 copies printed, we often have over 1013 returned. From which it will be seen that taking into consideration the fact that our average strength is 600, and that nearly 160 copies go to officers and outside subscribers, only about twenty-ﬁve per cent of the non commissioned oﬂicers and men help to support a paper which is run almost exclusively for them I It is quite impossible, as will be gathered from the above, to reduce the price of copies,

The following subscriptions to 17's Q.»l\l,Seret. Satchel}

311'.

icls

EAL/I», have been received : --

Cupminu. Clements .. Major .1. \Y. )I. \Vooxl, )I. V. 0.

Rs. 10

.. .

,_ ..

“

4 0 0

g o " 0

1; 10

0 6

but we dare to think that there is nota man in the Regiment who could not easily afford four annas monthly for a. copy, and we trust this little reminder will be sufﬁcient, and that

MONTHLY NOTES. Christmas has come and gone, the year of 1939 has dawned, and our Volume III

its appearance.

makes

As will be seen, some slight

alteration has been made in our front page, with What object will appear obvious. This. we venture to hope. is but the introduction of a series of improvements which will be made

irom time to time, a: necessity demands, and

the sales will show a considerable increase in 1909.

We offer our heartiest wishes to all our readers. and to all Royals, past and present. wherever they may be, for a Happy and Pros~ perous New Year. Christmas in baraclrs passed off cheerfully and quietly with the usual Squadron dinners

TH E

EAGLE

THE and concerts. There was, however, little done in the way of room decorations, conse-

say that it was quite an achievement, being accomplished in a way that has rarely been

quent perhaps on the early departure of the

seen.

Regiment for camp for the annual inspection by the Inspector-General of Cavalry. Mov ing out as we did on the 28th December, the 27th, and even Boxing Day, saw us busy with

preparations.

The river near Saraura, where we

were

arrival, however, no ﬁre position being avail-

that he can ﬁnd no record of any B. C. Stephenson. There are several things of interest to old Royals at Clifton Hall, amongst others being a complete uniform belonging to Colonel Clifton, and worn by him in 1815, and some horse trappings of the same period. These are kept in a glass case in the hall. Yours faithfully,

drowned whilst crossing the river, which

P.S.—A rather amusing incident happened to me at the Old Comrades’ Dinner. A man whose faceI could not recognise came up and shook me warmly by the hand and said, ‘The last time I saw you, Sir, you gave me ten days to barracks !’ I said that, no doubt he deserved it at the time, and he

a few feet the horses were out of their depth.

The annual Children’s Christmas Tree and distribution of school prizes was held at the Gymnasium on the 24th. The afternoon was spent in sports and other amusements on the cricket ground. Tea was then served in a large marquee, and afterwards the prizes

were given by Mrs. de Lisle.

younger men are non-swimmers, no accident

occurred.

It was a most noteworthy per-

formance.

All the mar-

ried families were invited, and several of the

ladies and ofﬁcers of the Regiment assisted. The Band, and the Circus clowns also contri»

hated to the entertainment.

The Inspector-General of Cavalry in India, Major-General Grover, held his ﬁrst day's inspection on the 4th instant, when each squadron was taken in turn at Troop and

Squadron drill. Our nine days’ camp proved not only very enjoyable, but alfarded us in addition the opportunity for what proved to be some very sound training. Owing to wantofa sufﬁciently large camping space, the squadrons were encamped in different places, close to the

This was followed by Regi-

Troop, and worked up to Squadron, Regimental, and Brigade

drill,

making use of

ﬂagmen as a skeleton enemy.

Then came forcing the passage of the River Gumti, and field ﬁring, and in the case of the former, it is perhaps not too much to

owing to the recent rainfall had become rather swollen and increased its current.

Camps had been struck on the morning of the 5th and at the conclusion of the field ﬁring, squadrons returned to Barracks. The following day, the Inspector-General saw “ B " Squadron at hiding school and skill-atarms, also the remounts and recruits. Then followed a horse parade by squadrons, and “ A ” and “ C ” inspection of arms and saddles

respectively. The following Regimental Order was published on the 6th : “The Commanding Ofﬁcer “ is much gratiﬁed at the result of the inspec“ tion by the Inspector-General of Cavalry,

“ who expressed himself as very pleased with

mental drill, the senior officers each in turn taking command.

“everything he saw, adding that he would

“ makea very favourable report on The Royal

The

day’s

work was

concluded

manoeuvre and attack against a skeleton enemy, in which both tire and shock tactics were employed.

Sitapur Road, about eight to ten miles from Barracks. A more or less central rendezvous was chosen each day, and we started with

ments, but I am sorry to say I have been unsuccessful. Sir Henry Bruce writes to say

able, “ A ” and “ B "decided to recross the river, and charge the enemy in rear. Simultaneous with this movement flagmen took up the position of the enemy, and- retired beaten, being pursued by the four squadrons in troops for over a mile. The whole scheme worked well and was most practical. “A ” Squadron had the misfortune to lose one horse

This we negotiated in column of troops formation, and much to our surprise the whole regiment went over without a hitch, the troops scarcely losing their dressing. Then after wheeling to the right and crossing a back wash in closedup sections, we re-formed troops in a cloud of dust, and before we knew what was happening, we were down the bank and recrossing the river at a point where the depth gave our horses quite a long swim and a rather considerable current made the task none too easy. Again the troops came over in excellent style without a moment‘s delay, and despite the fact that many of the

bungalow which had been tastefully decorated for the occasion, and the Sergeants‘ Mess members were at home during the morning to the ladies of the Regiment and a number of friends.

Hall, is a friend of mine, and I knew he had in

his possession many of the old Clifton docu-

and we ﬁrst crossed at a place where only for

Nevertheless we all spent a

honoured visits to the various dining halls,

supported by “C.” “ A ’7 running short of ammunition, were ordered to cross the river, and, followed by “B," to gallop north and take up position in the enemy’s rear. On

operating,is about 80 feet from bank to bank,

right merry Xmas. The Commanding Ofﬁcer and the Squadron officers made the timeand exchanged the customary compliments. The Band gave a. very successful vocal and instrumental entertainment in their large

EAGLE

On the following day the Regiment carried outaﬁeld ﬁring scheme with ball ammunition. Targets had been placed in position on some sand-hills overlooking the river, where the country was very broken. “A ” and “ B”

took up advanced positions on the ﬂanks and directed their ﬁre against the centre. “D” then advanced rapidly against the centre

W. F. G. O’SHAUGHNrssv.

acknowledged that he did, and

bore me no

ill-will. He is now doing very well and bears an excellent character." The Regiment is represented this year at the Bengal-Punjab Riﬂe Association Meet‘ ing at Meerut by the following :— Lieutenant E. A. R, Rube, Sergeants Rapkin, Allchin, Sales, Newton and Wilson; Corporal Hughes, and Privates Perkins, Holmes, Saunders, Taylor, Broadbent and Hall. So far, in the practice matches, they nearly all have taken small prizes, the most note-

“ Dragoons to the Commander-in-CLief.”

worthy performances being those of Sergeant Rapkin, who secured 4th place in the

We have just received the following letter from Colonel O’Shaughnessy to whom our thanks are due for his kindness :— “Dear Editor,~ln your October number of The Eagle, you published a very interesting letter written to Lieutenant-Colonel Clifton, Commanding The Royal Dragoons. by B. C Stephenson, dated 28th March, 1815, and asked for information about the writer I thought I might be able to help you, as Sir Henry Bruce, the present owner of Clifton

British Army, 600 yards even t, and Sergeant Wilson, whOse 33 at 200 yards, placed him 8th, This is our ﬁrst venture at the Indian Bisley, and itis to be hoped we shall continue to send a team during the remainder of our stay in India.

Next month will see us completing ﬁve years in India, the Regiment having ariived

THE

EAGLE THE

on the .9th February, 1904.

Under certain

conditions, after this period in the country, non-com missioned ofﬁcers are allowed asix months‘ furlough to England, but these are limited to something under twenty in the whole division. We are very fortunate, therefore, in being allotted no fewer than six passages,—all that were applied for. The lucky applicants will probably sail about the beginning of March.

and Discharged Soldiers.

The annual report

of the above body has just reached us, and shows how much good work has been done by the Association in ﬁnding employment for deserving cases. The Commanding Ofﬁcer sends :55 annually from Regimental Funds, and during the past year twenty-live men of the Regiment have found employ ment through this agency, which is deserving of all support in the twelve months ending

March 31st, 1905, the Society found employThis month sees the return to the Regiment of Mr. Tomkinson whose course at- the Cavalry School, Netheravou, is completed. The next ofﬁcer to undergo the course is Mr. 'l‘idswell who joins the school on the ist of March. He left Lucknow on the .33th for Home, and intends breaking his journey at Aden and going on a brief shooting trip into

Eomaliland. Captain Grant is at present taking part in the Artillery Practice Camp at Barkacha.

Many thanks to Captain Hardwick for his

ment for sixty per cent- of those registered. For the beneﬁt of those about to be transferred to the Reserve and who are in search of employment, the head ofﬁce of the Asso ciation is at 119, Victoria Street, Westminster. London, 3. W , and there are branches at

all the chief commercial and industrial centres in the kingdom. Any man applying to have his name registered on the books must

possess at least a

"good " character, and

must attend in person at the office, bringing with him any certiﬁcates or testimonials he may have. The hour for attendance of those

Tomkinson rode, with his usual excellent judgment, a mare, May Day, bred by his father. She was bred from the mare on which

Mr. Tomkiuson won the Cheshire Point-toPoint in the year he joined the Regiment. To quote our informant: “ It was a remarkable performance for so young an aminal (4:5 years only). She had never jumped a natural fence and had been trained over the made jumps at

the school only. One of the competitors was 6 years, and the rest aged horses.” We quote in full the account of the race

sent us by Colonel Tomkinson :—“I saw the race front} a hill overlooking a beautiful coun. try, Ten started out of thirteen entered, and amongst the horses were some high Class animals,—the two favourites especially~and some winners of several point-to-point races. The start was two or three ﬁelds away fi-Om the hill, and the competitors jumped into what was eventually the winning ﬁeld over the third fence, a very Stiff and upstanding one.

interesting account of the Old Comrades’

who wish to apply is 1045 A.M. daily, at the

Dinner which we publish in the present

above office, except Saturday. Anybody in the provinces should present himself at the nearest local office, information about which should be obtained from any important postoffice.

number. As he says, the annual Reunion haS now become an institution, and too much cannot be said for the excellence of such an event, which once a year, at least, brings to

gether members of the large family or" Royals of several generations. The thanks of all are due to the committee whose energy

has produced such splendid results.

May

the good scheme so happily established continue to prosper. Where the dinner will be held when the Regiment returns home is a problem that will tax even the organization powers of Major Balfour and Mr. Finn I In these days when the employment of Reserve and discharged soldiers becomes

yearlya more difficult problem, we Should like to drawthe attention of our readers to that excellent organisation, the National ASsociation for the Employment of ReserVe

We regret that in our last number in the description of the Army Cup Race at Lucknow in November, the Regiment was mentioned as having only one representative,

Captain Grant's Little Exile.

We omitted to

mention that Captain McNeile’s pony, The Colonel, also started, but though running prominently for some distance failed to gain a place.

From this point the course was straight

away for three ﬁelds and then came a turn to the left and acrOss a road about a mile from the start

Here the two

1%,— iniles

from

home, the two favourites were still holding a long lead, but soon after this Mr. Tomkinson

Our thanks are due to Colonel Tomkinson for an account of Mr. H. A. Tomkinson’s excellent performance in winning the light weight Point-to-Point and the Baden Powell Cup at the Cavalry School, Netheravon. Mr.

two leaders and jumped into the winning field just ahead of them ; then left them with the greatest ease and won by several lengths. The mare was hardly at all blown and not the least distressed or excited, butstood like a lamb when unsaddled in an admiring ring "’ The question of the Regimental Memorial Scheme has latterly not been much mentioned. For the benefitof some of our readers who may not be aware of the exact state of affairs, we may mention that it was definitely decided to apply the money subscribed to the erection of a memorial tablet in St. Paul’s Cathedral, and to use the residue for some scheme for the benefit of deserving old Royals. What form this will take, must depend cn the amount of money in hand after completing the tablet. A committee has

been appointed to consider the design, ecst, etc, of the tablet.

The original scheme of

the Cottage Home fell through, as, with the amount of money available, it was thought impossible to maintain an establishment worthy of the object to which it would be de»

voted.

favourites had a

long lead, and this was increased so much, as they disappeared into the country that they must have been 300 yards from the third horse, who again was some distance in front of Mr. Tomkinson on May Day, and the latter really seemed to be almost tailed off! However, he knew that there was plough country ahead and that the course was a long .‘_, miles ;and he rode the young mare with admirable patience and judgment. “On reappearing, about

EAGLE

‘asked his mare the question,’ and she re-

sponded in splendid style, going in and out of the road which had to be re-crossed,

at full

speed, and catching No. 3 just before the East fence from home. Going on, he overhauled the

The ﬁrst part of the Calcutta Racing Season may be said to have ended with the close of theFirst Meeting on December 31st. During this period of activity in the racing world, the Regiment have had one or two successes to their credit, chiefly through the efforts of Mr. Charriugton, who is now on the Viceroy‘s

staff as extra A.~D.-C.

At the fourth extra

meeting, he rode an excellent race on Mr. Field's mare Solace, carrying 11st. 1tlb, and winning by half a length, the race being the Zeerut Plate, a hurdle race of 1% miles over 7 flights. This he followed up by riding the

same mare on the second day of the big meet— ing in the Pony Hurdle Handicap of two miles. He again rode a fine race, but could only gain second place, being beaten a length and a half by the winner. At the fourth extra meeting Mr. Cosens’ Umutbee ran third

THE

EAGLE

in the Canning Plate, and on the third day of the big meeting the same owner’s Arabi an

Night won the Mistletoe Plate from a ﬁeld of thirteen by half a length. In the Grand Annual on the same day Chassepot now owne d

by Mr. Rube and ridden by Mr. Charrington, ran fourth.

gratulations to the happy couple, and our very

ing, but we hope the sport will soon be in full swing again. The hounds from home have all safely arrived and stood the journey

ing competition on Musette ; and the ‘ ﬁrst ’

gained by Moonstone in the hack class (14-2 and under). Moonstone was until quite recently the property of Colonel de Lisle, and

has just been bought by Count de Madre. At Tollygunge Steeplechases on January 2nd, Mr. Charrington was again prominent, winning the Military Steeplechase on Mr.

Miles' Idle, 8. recent purchase which looks like bringing much success to his new owner, We hope this early promise will be fulﬁlled. Later in the day Mr. Charrington secured second place on Loch Lily in the Pony Hunt-

ers’ Steeplechase; and was second again on Solace in the Pony Chase. On the second day of the steaplechases, January 9th, Idle scored another win for his owner in the Mlll~ tary Handicap Chase open to horses qualiﬁed to run in the Military Steeplechase on the

ﬁrst day. rode him.

This time his owner, Mr. Miles, Captain Grant's Perquisite was

third in the Pony Chase. The wedding of Lady Violet Elliot to Lord

Charles Fittinaurice has now beer. definitely ﬁxed to take place at St. Paul’s Cathedral, Calcutta, on Wednesday, January 20th, and

promises to be a very brilliant function.

take this opportunity of tendering our con-

well, and with the country-bred hounds the pack now number 11 couple. With high standing crops now mostly gathered in, prospects are more favourable, and we hope the efforts of the pack will be rewarded with the success they deserve. It cannot be said that up to the present sport has been quite so good as in former years, but no blame attaches to the master and his assistants who, as usual. have done their utmost to show sport. Sheer bad luck in a variety of ways has dogged them, and we hope withthe advent of the New Year the luck may change.

Congratulations to R. S. M. Plumb whose appointment as Riding Master of the 1st Life Guards has just been announced. Mr. Plumb was promoted Corporal in 1895, and from then

on spent most of his time as Riding School Instructor, eventually leaving the Regiment as Rough Riding Sergeant-Major to join the

Riding Establishment at Canterbury for training as Riding Master The regulation abolishing Riding Masters in regiments of cavalry of the line, was promulgated just as Mr. Plumb was about to be appointed in that capacity to the 14th Hussars. He then was sent as First Assistant to the Cavalry School, Netheravon, Where he remained until the post of Regimental Sergeant-Major fell vacant in the regiment, when, as our readers are aware, he received the Warrant rank and joined us here in India just over a year ago. He leaves for Home shortly to take up his new appoint. ment, and we wish him all success.

EAGLE Lieutenant-General

7 Sir

Brent

Spencer

0f the First or the Royal Regiment of Dragoons, contain-

commanding in the absence of Viscount Wel.’

ing an account of its formation in the reign of King Charles the Second, and of its subsequent services to the present time.

lington in Estremadura, thus reports to his lordship on these events :— “ It is with great pleasure I have to mention the very admirable conduct of the Royal s under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Clifton, and one troop of the 14th Light Dragoons. which being that were employed in covering the front from Villa de Egua to Espejo, were assembled at Gallegos, and retreated from thence agreeably to my directions, and notwithstanding all the efforts of General Montbrun, who commanded the French cavalry, to outﬂank the British, pressing them at the same time in front with eight

With Regimental training and inspections there has lately been little leisure for hunt-

On the last day of the ﬁrst meet-

of any note in connection with the Regiment, were Mr. Charrington’s ‘first ' in the jump-

HISTORICAL RECORD

best wishes for their future happiness.

ing Umutbee was again third ina selling handicap race. Flat racing was followed by the Horse Show at Tollygunge on January 1st, and the Tollygunge Steeplechases on January 2nd and 9th, At the Horse Show the only events

THE

By General C. P. de Ainslie. (Continued)

The French army, reinforced. and now placed under the command of Marshal Marmont, Duc de Raguse, advancing on the morning of the 6th of June in two columns, the Light Division had been ordered to retire the previous evening from Gallegos upon Nave d’Aver, and thence upon Alfayates. The Royal Dragoons, under Lieutenant Colo nel Clifton, and one troop of the 14th Light Dragoons, assembled at 3A.Mpat Gallegos, for the purpose of covering this retreat, and it must be noted that in withdrawing the picket, a man of the name of Banks deserted to the enemy, this being the only instance of so great a crime in the regiment that had ever happened, with one previous case of a soldier who was caught in the attempt, tried by court-martial and shot. At seven o’clock the enemy showed themselves to the extent of about 2,000 cavalry, 6,000 infantry, and 10 guns; but this overwhelming force was met by the British cavalry with a resolution and ability rarely equalled.

pieces of cannon, their retreat to Nave d’Aver merits the highest commendation.”

Major-General Slade speaks in much praise» of Major Dorville of the Royal Dragoons, and

of Captain Purvis of the same regiment, “who had opportunities of distinguishing themselves.” On the 4th of June, Colonel the Honourable George de Grey had been promot ed to the rank of Major-General, and placed in command of a brigade, composed of the

3rd “ King‘s Own ”and 4th “ Queen’s Own ”

Dragoons. On the night of the 6th of June, Major. General Slade’s brigade bivouacked at Al-

The celebrated French cavalry General,

fayates, and crossing the Goa the following day

Montbrun, in vain endeavoured to outflank the Royals and 14th, his squadrons were twice attacked and defeated, and the retreat of the Light Division was effected with little loss. The French lost a Colonel, "’ shot by a man of the name of Burnside in a very masterly style." The regiment had one

went into bivouac in rear of the infantry On the llth the regiment moved to Atalaya, on the 15th to Castello Branco, and 16th to Ladovera, where asupply of hats and overalls for the men arrived, of which they stood in much need, as may be judged by an account of their appearance at this time, viz , “ An old pair of stockings, with one rusty spur at the heel, an old pair of shag breeches, and a hat indescribable ‘having been worn through ' three long

troop sergeant-major, 3 men,

killed, and 9 men wounded.

and 6 horses

It is stated that

“since the regiment left Lisbon it never turned out stronger or looked better than on

the present occasion. The horses were perfectly recovered, and the large reinount of Tornkins had brought the regiment nearly to

its original strength.”

v successive years." Returning for a day only to Castello Branco, the regiment marching by Villa Velha, Niza, Apulion, Portalegre, arrived about the 28rd of June in the immediate vicinity of the town of Arronches in

THE

EAGLE T H E

Alantejo, standing on a rising ground near the small river Gaza, where, in an extensive wood of cork trees and gum cistas. the Royals remained for six weeks in huts constructed by the men, but the horses suffered consider. ably from exposure to the broiling sun. the cork trees affording but little shade Early in July much inconvenience began to be felt; the heat was most oppressive, the noxious smells from the camp became a serious evil, and by some accident a ﬁre broke

out which did considerable mischief, all which circumstances occasioned a desirable change of position nearer to the river and in a purer atmosphere. Major-General Slade had his headquarters in Arronches.

The outpost duties while at this camp of Arronches were extremely severe. They were supplied by the heavy brigade and the

9th, 11th, and 12th Light Dragoons

The

11th had but recently arrived from England, and their ﬁrst picket proved singularly

unfortunate, the squadron being surprised. and 4 oIﬁcers and

40 men taken prisoners

before any alarm was given.

So harassing

was the duty that for ﬁve weeks the saddles of the 12th Light Dragoons were never off the horses’ backs, and the regiment in consequence became so unﬁt that it was sent to the rear toavillage called Aslinear, and for a short time was attached to Slade's brigade. On the morning of the 25th of July the Royal Dragoons marched for Portalegre, on the 26th to Apulion, and on the 27th to Niza, and on the ‘3ch they crossed the Tagus to Castello Branco on the 29th. Moving by separate squadrons, the regiment reassembled on the 3rd of August at Penamara, situated on an eminence overlooking, perhaps, the most fertile and beautiful valley in Portugal. Following the course of the Aqueda, the regiment again separated on the 9th of August, one squadron attending Lord Wellington in a reconnaissance in the vicinity of Ciudad

Rodrigo, the blockade of which place being arised by the advance of Marshal

Marmont,

the head-quarters of Slade‘s brigade, and the Royal Dragoons was established at Soita, the regiment occupying the surrounding villages lying among woods of chesnut trees bounded by the river Coa. While at Soita, Major Jervoise, who had long been in bad health, was at length obliged to go to the rear, but was unable to travel further than the small village of Gabbion, ﬁve leagues from Abrantes, where he died. In these quiet villages of Soita, Kiuta, Vitrenda, Villa Tore, etc.,lost in the foliage

of the vast forests of chesnut trees, the brigade remained ﬁve weeks, until. on the cBrd of September, it marched to Etenero, and there bivouacked outside the village, in which was Lieutenant-General Sir Stapleton Cotton and his staff. On the 25th and 26th the Royals were drawn up in front of the position of Fuente Guinaldo, as were the whole of the British cavalry and artillery until, at 10PM , the brigade was ordered to fall back to their destined position at- Agaberca, four leagues oil. “' At «1 in the morning of the 28th of September, the regiment being mounted and formed in square in a WO'ld behind Agaberca, a deep grave was dug, and

a corpse sewn up in a blanket was brought forth to be buried. At first it was thought that some private soldier had died, but what was the astonishment and regret of every ofiicer to find that the dead man was Crosbie, who had gone to the rear only two days previously, slightly indisposed, and whose death was most extraordinary. On the 24th of September he was affected by a slight dysentery occasioned by drinking new wine ; he was advised by Langman to remain behind with the baggage, and to beware of taking

cold. On the 28th he went with the hospital to Agaberca, and ﬁnding himself still much

composition of the pills, he too: all the six.

each of which contained a suﬁicieut quantity of opium for one dose. The effect was mortal. In an hour after he had taken the

Aldea de t’onte, and the enemy following up o’clock the closely, about twelve

pretty

skirmishers of both armies became engaged. About 8 RM. the action became Warm, and the 4th Division which defended Aldea de Ponte was hardly pressed. The brigades of Slade and de Grey which had been retiring by echelon of half squadrons were brought up. The village of Aldea de Ponte was occupied by the French, and Slade ordered Major Dorville of the Royals to make a charge with his squadron, which he did in a most dashing manner, carrying all before him, and, coming

out at the end of the Village, rejoined the brigade without the loss of a man.

One man was

wounded, and Lieutenant Ross and Cornet Trafford had their horses shot under them. The French, however, kept possession of the village, and the British army fell back upon' its pesition at Sonta,

where the brigades of

While at Melho and Sentory, instructions were received for the incorporation of two troops with the depot, thus reducing the

numberin the Peninsula to six, the Royals having been for some time the only regiment

with 8 troops in the ﬁeld. The ineﬁ'ectives and sick men of two troops were in consequence sent to England and the depot placed under Major Purvis.

pills, he called his dragoon and told him to

lay outhis cloak and blanket and make his bed as he felt sleepy; in the meantime he continued walking up and down the room exclaiming h )w happy he felt, and occasionally began singing. Alas ! poor man I he was then under the elfects of opium; his happiness was that which preceded death ! He lay dOwn on his bed, fell into a deep sleep, and slept for ever! Thus, in the 23th year of his age, died Captain Crosbie, a most amiable and promising young man, beloved and lamented by the whole regiment. After the funeral ceremony, the Royals slowly retired through Puebla d‘Azaon Nyon,

Slade and de Grey hivouack ed together. relaxed,sent for an infantry surgeon, who gave him six opium pills, with order to take one per day, until he found the purging cease. Crosbie did not pay sufﬁcient attention to the injunction of the surgeon, and ignorant of the

EAGLE

(To be continued.)

OLD COMRADES’ DINNER, 1908. There is an old proverb which says that “ the proof of the pudding is in the eating. "’ Last year a pudding was made for our delectation, but we were only alloyed a small bite just asa sample. You will remember that we enjoyed the sample exceedingly and smacked our lips in anticipation of the puddv ing proper. We have now eaten of the pudding,

proved

it,

and found

very

good.

Judging from the gathering on Saturday night, I think we maysafely predict that the Old Comrades‘ Dinner has ceased to be a shadow, and has become a very substance. it is now a going concern and an institution. Twenty-two ofﬁcers and two hundred men collected from all parts of England constituted the party, and i doubt if any Cavalry Regiment ever produced anything like this number on a similar occasion. There were four Crimean veterans present—Messrs. Davis, Puzey, Merritt, and Millin-Wilson : and old Royals of every decade since that time.

Both Colonel Maclean and the Chairman paid aﬁtting tribute to Major Balfour and Mr. Finn, the chief organisers, and it must have been very gratifying to these two gentlemen to see the result. of their labours. However.

the energetic and insatiable Mr. Finn was not quite satisﬁed: he thought there should have been more old Royals present ; doubtless next year there will be many more. Last year we modestly took one of the small dining balls at the Holborn

Restaurant; this

year we (lined in the King‘s Hall, one of the largest dining rooms in L indon Where we shall eventUally go before Mr. Finn’s canvass— ing energies are exhausted, it is hard to conjecture. Possibly when he have ﬁlled the

THE

EAGLE

THE Albert Hall with an overﬂow dinner at the 1m—

Bryant, Pte. Bullock, Sergt. E. T. Burgess, Pte. J. Burt, Pte. J. Canﬁeld, Pte. F. Cash, Sergt. R. H. Casstine, Pte A. Chick, Pte R. Child, COrpl. F. Clarke, R.S.-Major C. F. Clements, Pte. H. E Cole, Corpl. J. G, Colobatch, Pte G Conner, Corpl C. H. Cooke, Pte. W. Cooledge, Pte. H. G Cooper, Sergt.

EAGLE

perial Institute, Mr. Finn will be satisﬁed ; perhaps not. There is no limit to his energy in anything, especially where the welfare of anything or anyone connected with the Royal Dragoons is concerned, and the same equally applies to Major Balfour, [ have no fears as to the future of the Old Comrades gathering, its success is assured. The value of these re-unions cannot be overestimated, and one must be present at one of them to

F. W. Cooper, Corpl. E. P. Cope, Pte. R

Instr. S. J. Reimers. Pte. F. Renben, Corpl. G. Reynolds, ’l‘pr. F. Reynolds, Sergt. E. F. Richardson, Corpl. C. A. Riches, Pte. S. G. Riches, Corpl. G. Ridley, Pte. A. Ridley, S. Q. M.-Sergt. GE. Rogers, Corpl. F. W. Rooke, Pte. J. Rutt, Fte. J. Ryan, Pie. A. J. Scotcher, Pte. E. A Sentance, Sergtnh‘arr. J. Sharp,

Cressy, Pte C. L. Curtis, Pte. S. Curry, Pte. J. Davis, Pte. T. Davis, Corpl. C. Day, Sergt. H. Denman, Band-Sergt G. W. Doughty, Pic.

Sorgt. J. Simkins, TSM. Tom Sinton, E’te. F. G. Slingsby, Corpl. C. W. Smeeton,

appreciate fully how much pleasure can be

T. J. Eason, Pte. F.

derived from an evening such as we spent last Saturday. The Old Comrades Dinner took place on Saturday, November 28th, in the King's Hall, Holborn Restaurant. The following ofﬁcers

Corpl. H. C Edwards, Pte H Eskritt. Pte. R.

were present :— Colonel Mesham iin

chair),

Colonel

Ferguson,

R.S.—t\/Iajor W.

Pte.

Field,

R S.-

A. F. Fitchett, Start-Scrgt. J. E Forrest, Pte.

Fair-Major P,

Basing, C.B , Colonel Morton, Colonel Burn,

F, E. Hailing, Pte.

Dent-Col.

Carr-

Balfour, Major Pitt, Major Wood, M.V 0., Major Troyte-Bullock, Captain Cornet-Smith, Captain Burns, Captain the Hon'ble H. Guest, Captain Leighton, Captain Godman, Captain Hardwick, Lient and Adjt. Hodgson, Lieut. Tomkinson, and Major Ostertag, German Military Attache. The following is alist of other old Royals who were present :— Sergt Bee. Pte. Bearne, Pte. Cheiret, Pte. Cutler, Pte Greenland, Pte. Glanville. Sergt.

Judd, Pte. Rose, Pte. Rising, Pte. Simmons, Pte. G. H Smith, Pte. Waite, Pte A.J. White, Pte. Worsley, Tpr. F. Adams, Pte. A. H. Askey, Pte. A. E Austin, Pte. W. Ayling, Pte, G Baker, Pte. F. S Baldock. Pte. P. Banks, Pte.

Barr,

Bandsman

Barr.

Pte.

Barton, Pte C. Batcock, Pte. A. Batt, Pie. C. Beale, Pte, W. H. Beeson, Pte. R A; Bell; Corpl R. Bentley, Pte. J. Billings, Corpl. A, W. Blackstone, Rte. J. H. Booth, Tpr.-MajorW. Bowles, SS-Major‘C. H. Bradshaw, SS:

Major A. Brooks, Pte. W._Brown, Pte

C. Hards,

Pte. H.

Harris, Pte. A. R Harrison, S‘i-Major C. Hatherall, Corpl. H. Hatherill, R Q 31 Sergt. E. Haylock, Sergt. A. S Hedges, Pte, W. J. Hoad, Pte. A. Hodges, Pie. W. Holland, Pte. G. J. Holt, Pte. A. E, Horne, Pte. J. Hewlett, Sergt.-Farr. W. Howlett, Pte. A Humphreys. Pte. E Jackson, Pie. W.

Jones,

Corpl. A.

Joslin, Pte T. Kelly, S.Q.M.‘Sergt. (:‘r. King7 Pte. A J. King, Corpl. C. [-1 Kirby, Pte. H. barman, Pte. F. W. Le Ferre, Ptc. F. Leverett, Pte. J Macdonald, Pte. E. Mansﬁeld, Pie. Joe Mannering, Pte. C. Marsh, Pie. T. May, Pte. H. H. Melmoth, Pte. R. C. Merritt, Pte. C. Millin Wilson, Pte. E Minns, Pte. J. E Minns. Pte. B. J. Morris, Fte. W. Neath Pte A.E. Newbolti, Pte W. Norley, TSM" J.l\'orton, Pto F. W. Orgar, Capt, C, W, Parsons, TS M. C. H. Parker, Pte. T.

Patient. Pte. C. Peake,

Pte.

Perry,

Pte. “7. Phillips, Pte. F. Piercy, Pte. Pittkin,

Pte. SC. BlunibgCorpl. L Power, Bto J. ,W.

W. Plume. Pte. C.

Priest,

W. H.

Sutton, R.S.-1\Iajor M. E. Swan:

Firmstone. Pte.

F. Francis, Pte. T A. Francis, Pte. H. J. Gar,

Gooch, Pte G. H. Greenman,

Pte.

QM.-

Sowter, Pte. R. Spring, Pte. W. Spring, Pte. E. Stiles, Pte. T. J. Sumpster, S.S.M~

R. R. W. Major W. T. Finn, Pte. F. G.

Lieut.~Col. O‘Shaughnessy,

Eilison,Lieut.-Col RobertsonAikman, Major

Tpr. N. A. Shirley,

Eds-all,

Greenwood, Pte. E. Gunton, S.Q.M.-Sergt, W. Halford. Pte. J, H. Hall, Pte R. Hall, Pte.

Maclean, Colonel Tomkinson, Colonel the Lord

Shaw,

l‘rorpl. W. Smith, Pte. J. Smith, Edrupt,

diner, Pte D. Gentry, Pte. .E“. B Glave, Pte. J. the

Tpr. J.

Pte. J.

l’uzey

SSM, IE.- J. Pye, S.S._-Farr.- W..Raven,; Pte. C.,Rawlinson, Corpl. W, J.. Reed, Se1‘_gt..,_

Pte. E Sycamore, Pte. C. W. Taylor, Lte. J. G. E. Taylor, Pte. J. Theison, Corpl. H. W. Thomas, R,S.-Major J. F. Thompson, Pte. F. H. Travers, Pte. H, Tucker, Lieut. W. Weight. man, Pte. F. J. Wadley, Pte. J. Wagland, Tpr. C. M. Wales, Pte. W. Walker, Pte. E. Walker, Bandsman R. E. Wallace, SSM. S. G. Wallis, Pte. W. T. S. Wallis, Pte. H. “’ard, Pte. E. Way, Pte. A. West, Pte. F'Wells, Corpl.F. J. VVheeeler, R.Q.M.-Sergt. W. R. White, Corpl. J. W. White, SSM. A,

Williams,

C.S.M.

Instr.

Williamson, 0. RS. M. C. E. Worsdell, Pte. JE. Wright, Pte. W. Wynes, Pte. Yates. After-the loyal toasts, the Chairman read telegrams of good wishes from the Ofﬁcers and Sergeants of the Regiment, also telegrams of regret for non-attendance from Colonel Burn-Murdoch and Captain Webb. He also read a letter from the Editor of The Eng/.6 in which he said he forwarded 514

copies for distribution at the dinner, and he (the Chairman) hoped that this would be the means of getting more subscribers to what he described as “ the best Regimental paper he knew.” Colonel Tomkinson proposed “Our Colonel. iii-Chief.” He said it gave him the greatest pleasure to propose this toast, and he knew it would be received with the greatest enthusiasm. He recalled the fact that he was in

command of the Regiment when the Emperor

was appointed Colonel-in-Chief, and he never would forget the kindness shown him by the Emperor when he and other officers of the Regiment went to Berlin, and not only by the Emperor, but by all the German officers with whom they came in contact. He recollected that on thatoccasion his powers of suction were sorely tried! In proposing this toast, he coupled with it the name of Major Ostertag. The toast was enthusiastically drunk. Major Ostertag in reply thanked the Old Comrades for inviting him to their dinner, and said he was astonished to see such a magnificent gathering of Old Royals—he did not think it would have been possible to have collected so many atone time. He said it was his intention to forward the list of diners to the Colonel-in-Chief He remarked that he received The Eagle every month and always forwarded it on to the Emperor. In conclusion, he proposed “The Royal Dragoons ” Captain Guest said that, although the duty of replying to this toast devolved upon him as the senior member 01' the Regiment present, he had been away from the Regiment for ayear and a half, and he conseiuently would ask M r. Hodgson to speak of the Regiment's latest doings. He thanked every oneon behalfot' the Regiment for the way they had received the toast, and assured them that the Regiment was very gratified to think of the good feeling which existed be tween past and present Royals. He said that old Royals had always set an example which present Royals tried to live up to. Mr. Hodgson said he had left the Regiment a month ago, to come home on leave, and

he ventured to think it was every bit as good today as when his hearers were in it He pointed out that the Regiment lost a number of good men every year, transferred to the Reserve, and that ever since they went to India, they had been dependent upon the Greys for drafts. Now, however, they had

THE

EAGLE

THE EAGLE their own recruiting-sergeant at St. George‘s Barracks, and he appealed to every one to send good men who wished to join the service,

and

they could become Royal Dragoons at once.

He referred to The High, and said that the Editor had almost entirely to depend upon present members of the Regiment for “ Copy.” He expressed a hope that every one would hear the paper in mind, and that people would send items of interest and articles from home hie proposed the Old Comrades. Colonel Lord Basing in reply expressed

his great pleasure at being asked to do so. He said that the Regiment had always remembered that they had been brought up and trained by Old Royals and were proud otthem. He hoped to see still more at the dinner next year, and said he was very glad to see six ofﬁcers at present serving there that night. joionel Maclean said that a year had gone by since they last met, and he was very glad to see every one looking so well. He was delighted to see a larger number this year

ing like that night made him feel quite young again. They had heard that the Regiment was second to none in India, just as it had been in England, but that didn’t surprise them in the least. Colonel Morton, proposing the Chairman. said that if any of those present, when they were Colonel

purpose a (so-called) loyal Dutchman, who had a farm in the vicinity. The rebel's wife had stayed on at the farm for some time, but was removed.

enemy at Vryheid on the l6th instant, We left Kouigsberg on the 21st and marched to Newcastle where on arrival we heard of the illness of Her Majesty the Queen. The next

We made an inventory of the buildings, fur-

day Her Majesty’s condition was reported to

having become a suspect she

niture, etc, and then proceeded to

Valuation Mesham’s age,

board,

hold a

which, after some little

looked half as

young and as well as he did, they wouldn‘t do badly. Colonel Mesham in reply said, he yielded tonoone:in his love for the Regiment. He always wished he had commanded the Regiment, and he had always regretted that liis to“, Who also served in Llle Regiment, had not lived long enough to command. it. The Chairman announced that he had sentthe following telegram to the Colonel inChief :— “ Three hundred Old Comrades, assembled “here to-night, drink health and happiness to “ their Colonel-in-Chiel‘. P_ E. H.

“differences " total at 177144.

ot'opinion, assessed the sum The b. ard

then locked up the

house and posted a notice from the ProvostMarshal on the door, threatening awful penal. ties on any person or persons interfering with

the house or its contents, The board then dissolved, half of it trekking towards Muller’s ”ass, and the other halfethis halt‘Hreturning to camp, In this manner do we safe-guard the rebel Dutchman’s property in Natal. an entirely dil'l'erent method, be it noted, from

be worse, and on the 23rd,

whilst marching

to Umbana, the heliograph from ﬂashed the sorrowful news that revered Queen had paSsed away ed onthe hillside on the 25th and arms, whilst the booming of the guns could be faintly heard After conducting a convoy of into Utrecht,

we returned to

Newcastle our much» We paradpresented Newcastle provisions

Newcastle

than last, and hoped the number would go on

but heavy furniture,

increasing. Looking round he saw lots of old friends, and he reminded them that he

could not be carried away, had been smashed

couple of days ago. Thunderstorms of considerable violence have been common of late. Yesterday one came on at 4 RM, and raged exactly an hour. You may judge of the quantity of rain that tell, when I tell you that a mail cart drawn by ten mules, endeavouring to cross a spruit, or small ford, was washed away and nine of the ten mules drowned. At ordinary times one could hop over this spruit! The lightning killed three oxen close to our lines, and whilst

and rendered useless.

standing at my

had been before

them,

When

at the commencementof the war they invaded

the British Colony, I well

remember some

of the Britisher’s farms I saw. Not only had the places been looted of all portable valuables, and all

goods

which

SOUTH AFRICAN LETTERS. KITCHENEn's KOPJE,

Such

wholesale wan-

tent door,

holdingr the wet

both hands, and watching the

ton destruclion would be hard to equal.

carvas with

About the middle of the month we cornmenced building sangars and small fortifica-

awful but beautiful flashes. I received a slight electric shock in my arms 1 am sorry to tell you that we lost another

and that several of

them had been before him! He said he would like to put the clock back a bit and join again. and he didn't doubt that there were several there who were of the same

opinion.

that adopted by the Boers themselves.

He proposed the Committee.

vacasrnu, 315/ January, 1901.

tions round the camp.

DEAR M,—

We put in some very

hard work upon them, and the day they were ﬁnished, we evacuated the place! Sounds

young ofﬁcer on the 31st ultimo. End-Lieu

stupid, rat-her, doesn't it?

He was a from enteric fever soldier, and was much liked.

The ﬁrst part of this month we spent at

Captain Parsons replying, regretted that

Fort

Konigsberg,

and

were

enlivened

But the exigen-

cies of a campaign are such that one requires Mr. Finn had jiboed as it was really his duty to reply to this toast. He paid a great tribute

to Mr. Finn, and pointed out that the thanas of every one were due to him for the part

he had taken in organising the dinner.

(Mr. Finn) had worked so hard that it really was a \valu-over for the rest of the Committee. He also hoped that there woud bea larger attendance next year. There was only one Regiment for them all, he said, and he recalled

the happy days he had spentin the Regiment; even after twenty-six years’ service a gather-

several alarms,

tenantForbesLeith,

who died at Newcastle

promising

turning out at all sorts of the patience of Job,

unearthly l‘ioutsto ride out to the foot of the passes, evidently to stop an imaginary enemy (our well-beloved manoeuvre friend), for we saw no Boers—at least i didn‘t, though I am told there was one killed in an outpost affair at Sache Pass. Another incident which shows one of the many odd jobs a soldier is called upon to perform on active service, occurred a fewidays ago. 1 had to go to a farm belong.

and

the

temper

saint to successfully withstand the thousand and one annoyances one is subject to. For instance, it almost invariably sounds " saddle up ”just as the coffee is on the boil, while it is ten to ore that justas we are getting the bette r of a pig which we have stalked for half

an hour, or a cock-fowl which we have chased twenty-ﬁve times round a farm out-building, up comes the Provost-Marshal I

ing to a rebel (at present in Newcastle Gaol) News is just to hand that one of our

men

and value the contents, meeting there for that (Private Moneton) was taken prisoner by the

Yours, OL-OL.

SERGEANTS’ MESS NOTES. The most noteworthy event of the past monthin connection with the MESS is the appointment of its chief, our Regimental Sergeant-

Major, as Riding Master to the 1st Life Guards, and we offer him our hearty congratulations 011 his good fortune. One is remind~ ed of the proverb “ Out of evil cometh good ”

1—1

THE

in regard to Mr. Plumb’s promotion, for it will be remembered he missed getting his commission in the 14th Hussars by a matter He leaves of days, some two years back. shortly with his family for London —— that Mecca of all British soldiers in India! S SIM. Allen is oﬂiciating RS. M. Another well~known member to leave us is Squadron QuartermasterSergeant W 0 Stuart, who sailed for England on the 8rd instant, with his wife and two children. to take up an appointment as instructor

the

Surrey

Yeomanry,

which corps our late Adjutant, Captain Hardwick,

is Adjutant, and

Major Calvert is a

squadron commander. Stuart joined the Regiment in 18,92 and wears the two medals for the late South African campaign. He is the author of the very

readable article “The Hull

Dock Strike "

which appeared in the columns of ‘1/ie Eagle a month or two ago. The best of luck attend him and his family in their new sphere of action. Yet another departure is announced, to wit : Rough Riding SergeantMajor Cope, who leaves shortly for the Remount DepOt

at Sargodha where he is posted as Line Overseer. Cope joined the Royals just prior to the war and has spent most of his service in the Riding School. He was promoted R RSM. on the retirement of R.R.S.M.

Trickerin 1906

(“ Bungey “)

At this extraordinary rate

of departure, the Mess will soon cons1st en-

EAGLE (that panacea for all ills) and a good deal of interesting soldiering. Much illsuppressed excitement has been observed on the part of certain of the members who have just been granted six months’ furlough to England. Anticipations of what they will do, and where they willgo. are causing them to idealise “England Home and Beauty ” into a sort of paradise of peace and plenty. The remainder of us have endeavoured to throw cold water upon their enthusiasm, butl suppose we are only jealous of their good fortune. Let us be generous and hope the realization will not result in the shattering of their ideals. The members who rcpresenled the Regiment at the B. P. R. A. Rifle Meeting at Meerut, have returned with, if no very valuable prizes, at least with much useful experience added to their handiness with the rifle. Sergeant Rapkin, it is understood, was going strong in the running for the " jewel, " but had the misfortune to be disqualified for tiring the incorrect nu mber of rounds. Better luck next time! SSM. Allen, SQ. M S. Lawrence, and Sergeant Goddard have. proceeded to Calcutta, where, as members of Lord Charles' Squadron, they represent the Sergeants’ Mess at the much-discussed wedding. Let us take this opportunity of conveying the best wishes of the Mess to Lord Charles and his bride.

tirely of young blood With youth on theirside, let us hope they will prove, at least, worthy

successors,

“SERGEANT.”

Christmas in the Mess passed

cif very quietly, though by no means un— After church the customary pleasantly. assembly of all members and their ladies and friends took place in the Mess-room and reasonablegreetings were exchanged. Among the visitors were Mrs Beatty, and Sergeantlnstructor Tomlin, the latter having obtained leave from his corps to spend the festive season “ with the boys ”as he himself would

express it

THE

The brides made their debut on

this occasion. The dinner was very successful, and every member was present to do justice to the excellently-put-on meal.

Work

claimed us the following day, for the Regiment was ordered to move out into camp on the 28th, and festivities had to be cut short. The Editor will doubtless deal with the Regiment’s doings in camp, so that reference here»

under will not be necessary. Sufﬁce to say, that we had a really good time; plenty of work

THOMAS ATKINS. BY Llh:U1‘,-COLONEL NEWNHAM DAvis. ( T/ze origin of Mr 11/71/16 " T/Iomns XIX/tins " in 7172771713 In [/13 Brink/1 soldier ﬁns [men mirror/Illa!

m m mmrr 1041's, as Ill/151 .s‘o/n’z‘ws my ram/A alm’ 1w airy/(212’ rt! last to [car/z 10/111! 77111.31 [)2 lake/z for 1/16 (Int/1671M; manner of its oz'l'i/I. l'Vc cull f/Ie 2’!)le hurrah-71g artz't‘lefl'rmz “ P/z‘nlcm‘ Pzr."~—ED1’L‘OR). The great Duke of Wellington stood on the path which runs round the ramparts of Walmer Castle and looked out to sea. The day was one of splendid sunshine—it was at the commencement of the July of 1849—-and the 01d soldier, at home by the seaside, had put on clothes, nan keen and duck, suitable to the

day.

He stood, one foot on the carriage of

EAGLE

one of the little corronades, leaning lightly on a Malacca cane, and his eyes, looking over the sea, seemed to gaze beyond the horizon. Near him, and a little behind him, stood at attention a young stal'l‘ officer of the Adju-

tant-General’s Department, in undress uniform. He had brought some papers down for the signature of the Commander in-Chief— for Hill was dead, and the Duke had been reappointed for life to the com mend—and be fore carrying the documents back to London he had asked a question on a small matter of

detail, which the War Oﬁ'lce thought should, as a compliment, be referred to the com mand-

er of the forces. A name typical of the British private sol~ dier was required to be used on the model sheet of the soldiers' accounts to show where the men should sign. it seemed a ridiculous ly unimportant matter to the young staff ofﬁcer. and he was surprised when. instead of answering olfhand, the Duwe had thrust his cane into the path of broken shells, and had then looked steadily on losea.

The great Duke stood without a movement, and the young ofticer waited. Before those eyes, which looked over the rim of the world,

was unrolling a vast panorama of all the gallant deeds he had seen done in war. He was searching in a memory stored with recollections for the man who should best typify the dogged gallantry of Britain 's private soldiers. Before him, as in a picture passed that desperate fight to hold Hugoumont, and then his mind travelled back to the olive» groves and the vineyards of Spain: to the snow topped Pyrenees, and the purple ridges and the black cork woods of Portugal. He felt again that gripping of the heartstrings he had endured as the thin stream of rcdcoats crawled up the rocky cliffs into the Seminary at Oporto: he saw the dancing line of British bayonets sparkle as they came to the. charge at Busaco: he looked again in imagination on the dreadful breach held by the dead at Badajos: but no one name came more clearly to his mind than another Tra~ velling ever backwards, memory carried him to a blazing sun and scorched plains~ to the savage storm of Ass-aye, and to the fierce

fight in the darkness before Seringapatam: but stillthe name he searched for did not come. , ' .‘ Now he‘was in the Low Countries on his first‘campaign, fighting his first action. He saw again the clear 'rain washed blue of that

September sky, the line of wind-mills on the horizon, the pink and blue and yellow houses by the canal blinking in the morning sun, the distantspires of Bois le Duc His regiment. the 88rd, a corps of veterans. stood in reserve. He knew that his ofﬁcers were waiting to see how the boy colonel would handle his regiment under ﬁre. His first experience was to

trying one.

The

French were in superior force, and in the cloud of smoke before him he could see that the ﬁrst line of the British were being pressed back. Firing still, turning at any poznt of vantage, the red-coats were yet giving way; the French light troops flung at them to complete the disaster were almost in theBritish ranks, and on the left a squadron 0f French cavalry cantered, waiting an opportunity to charge. Then young Wellesley put the discipline of his regiment to one of the severest tests known in warfare. At the word of command every company swung backinto column leaving thus wide lanes through which the hard‘ pressed troops in the ﬁring line could retire. Crimed with powder, cursing in anger the men dashed through, and like closing gates the. companies of the gallant old 83rd swung back again

The French

were

so close on

them that some of the men were bayoneted before the word to ﬁre was given Thrice the Brown BeSses spoke#volleys as steady as though the regiment was firing on inspection parade—and then the word to advance was given, and with bayonet: ﬁxed the 83rd moved forward to take up the ground from which the other regiment had been forced to retire. The three volleys had done their work, the ranks of the French had crumbled away

before

them,

and

the

drawn off like a trail of mist.

cavalry

had

The day was

Wall.

Wellesley rode back to where on the ground, on the Iirst line his regiment had held, were little groups about men who had fallen. The men of the band were already busy with their

stretchers. He rode to where the right of his line had been 'l‘here on the ground lay the pride of the rankand-h‘le, the right-hand man of the. (1! renadier company, Thomas

Atkins.

Six foot three he stood in his stock-

inged feet; twenty years he had served his

Majesty the King; he could neither read nor write; he was the best man at arms in the regiment, and one of the stoutest hearts in the world. One of the bandsmen who stood

1,,-

rnu EAGLE

The Great Duke turned to the young staff oﬁicer. “Thomas Atkins,” he said, shortly. The ofﬁcer saluted and withdrew. As the sound of his footsteps on the path died away, the Duke turned once more to the sea.

Sizri‘iec.

30745.

OR. Seret. Fisher extended to

complete

Transfers,

190‘).

.l/iII'CN.

Lieut (‘. ll. I‘idswcli to (‘avnlry School. Netlieravrm. 342.3. 8 O M N Stuart to England on posting to Ferma— ncnt Sinll'. Surrey 1. Y. 4470. 511* II 1’. (‘mm to \‘arnodlm nn :lpiinlllllﬂi‘nl as Line Uve *eei' :it Heiiioliut Depot. . Corpl Winter u. I‘IIIEIIIIMI. Invnlided. . IJIIlC“ (‘0 pl Norton Io Naini Tul as Sick transfer .. “ ,\. S. Dcwinnr h “ . I'm: Larry h “ Hninili'on " .. " “ Kinimiid 'l‘n [Jug/hind for ti'iinsi't r In -Irni y Reserve. Laiice-Sei'yt. Alister

Ci awley

I’llLIdli‘OOt

Promotions and Appointments. mp. 'l‘mvnsheiid ‘ Turner Ross Sam ways Moi icy (mehurst Washroom Stiiithers Sawyer Wenon

BiSiST, Lanee-Sergt Richmond to he‘Sergeant. 4576, Corpl. Riltcilffu to be Lancelbergmnt. ' “ Angus " 3:37) Lance—Cdrpl. Yeates to he Corporal. 5649 “ Workman .. 5094 “ Miller ..

p'ytatt it s

. ‘

$5: Unpd. Lance-Corpl l:‘picer to be Enid LaiicefOi‘pl. ’ ~ ” “ uyne 22:2; '” Bullion 4330 " Seaton 549i) " Bis iig 5304 “ Judge L “ Brown

Fitch

Parrolt Ho.‘ Snaekell Stone (iardner Rivelt Hawkett Knight “ Vlnrlow “ . Alliott to be Unpaid Lance-Corporal. “ HIIIIICIG'I “

(‘60

“

Meteer HoinVille

Richardson M ulllis

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5W0

Bill

’

I‘Omuhn

nil-d hi cnzin Ellis Jiﬂvmliert ‘ ' :iylor 2‘ ., Coi‘p‘. Edwards , l’te, ’l‘horntln-mjte . “ Shivers ? ‘? (lswick 7“ \Vellbclovc

in nu rice

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Wciitherhczid Cook lilnoilworth VVI'IL’hL

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Lowe Lemon A nnal lim'inginn

llries

Maynard Munro 5001 t To nor Mcl’person lioeip—stcr Skiiton [hour Furlong/Ii rind

: ' 1 " . . 7 ' . . '' , .. ' 47 ‘~ Laure.

9935 s s \I nths. 43731513.“. .- d for 3<i37|d£rgt it’hs.

Miles Field V\ nod Ed is \ oss Price, (hint Hurt Rlxon

Cooke granted furlough toEnuliind for si\‘ -I I“ and (I Corke granted furlough to Eng— . , ‘ ‘ six months. Sales granted lurlough I0 Eligiand for 51x _

Von Ill.

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 151‘ ,

EDITORIAL NOTICES. D'V’Imil‘ililio/is in "TIM liar/Ir" m'r rm/‘ullmiw :-» iN'uhxcl-iliu's II/ llama. [IN‘ (HUI/(III . . Sill/NI’)‘I7MI'N in [IL/lid " “ Ann-mum, XIV/It'll o/Iicnw (III/l mm ‘ ‘ '

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'._,, 7m' rum/1m .. l ‘ ‘' Price per (mm In nfl, Ins» .. .. ,. u-s—u l'ricir pu' copy In 1wIz-I'Ii/IiniisximiI-vl Milo/us and mm .. .. 04-0 Nizlw-rz'p/imix (11w (luv in (/drinm (1/1 I] .Y/IUIIIV/ III sni/ II) I/n- lz‘rlz'lm'. (1’0 TIM [Mi/III Drum/nus. .lZI I-MniI/qunm iz'i'II 1W uckiiou'Zc/Iuéd in ”If [inri [mm/Mr tiff/Hi IIIIIII'I' pit/ilixIIu/ (If/41‘ Perri/if. A‘r/Iixcrz'lmrs slimy/£12” [II/II (ll/I’l'l’SS/‘h‘, [II'IIt‘H/I/I'Ilfl rm. Imre ni.I'II/'Im1{//i.m' [villi/Ly V/ic li’rrr/i/m-III NIH/12711 nn/[fl/ 6/1» Editor of ”If new IIIIIII'mx. .[ Iii/Hind numb; r of Inn-II comics are Il'cp/ In A'VOM‘ (UNI can lie l/(ll/ mt application. In t/ll’ [Mi/01'. .Il.’commUnit-(dioxin [IL/«lulu! for public/(li on in " TIM» liar/[W " N/IIIIIII/ In Mimi/Ion. on one sirlk (if/III [nu/«1- wfly. Ilildl'r’ssml In Mr lg'vliirn’. tuiiI N/IIIIIZII III (Ici‘mluidliiml by HM «Ni/H's 11mm» (IIIII (/(Ii/I'A’N’N. T/II’ [Mi/Hr will not IUZIII/I‘I‘II/{c In Iin i'l’.\'/IflllNi/IZ(’ ,I‘m- (my I’V_I'Fl’/tl/ .IIS.. lim' Io return, any cruih'iImIi/Jn iuzlms RIII'L‘iIIZIJ/ III-sired Io «lo M. Con/riliun'mzs elm/1M I'NII'II I/M JLVIIIMI' [ml Inhr UIUIL iI/e JIII of «(Ir/z mun/Ii. In rim/11w public/(tion [It t/HI/ maul/if.»issue. .llu/ilm'x. past (1m! [II‘FA‘cIZrL or IIivL'I- r'x'ichs arr asked to commuuiw/II It) HM [UV/MOP (my iIi-m. of ILI'II‘N IM'tII/ In III 07' iIL’I'I'ISf In our I'(‘(II!'{'I'.\'. II flax/HIM Ito/iced [l/[I'/i(‘IIZ(II'Zl/ III/II II('I{'.\‘ (if army/17mm L‘N/‘H/(H'I/M/ wI/Ii. {/I'r/II iII/('I'('i<f In/ prim/ii ling/(11s. 11ml sac/I comma. Mica/inns are Mr mums 0_r'«rsIuI;I1'sIIi‘n(/ and main/dining 111a! [5111‘ [Him-mi [NIN/ II/LI/ [mu/II. Iii/iii 1's IIM pl'ium/I'i/ ribjuzf riff/[c pupu', 77,1. Eili/mg/mv/Izw inritm rel/«Irrx f0 sum/iii to Iii/1i (my inquiI‘ics H'Iiir'I/ /I1’ I/im/ III (/va Io (Ins/Iw' I/g/ I'NINUII (If III/I‘L'III/r/r'i't-xs to Mr IBM/Illic/ilill records. Ilim‘fl ii'iII. us fur «1.x- possible. In? rim/II Ici'II/ 11/1,in r ” .l/Lsziw's in ('oi'l'zrsnondmls.“ ”View iimccssm'y. it reply by III/tr will In» wnI. ICU/(«far:Iillfcl'fl'n‘cllu‘lLlA‘ can: I/w userrlizin ml on application /o NI!’ Ir'rlihir.

M- a 6Y

‘33:

PIEI'pOInI‘. to he ShOCIIlg-Smth.

Exalininatimrs. Lieut. A C Charrineton qualiﬁed for appointment- as Acting l’ayimister. y . E W. '1‘. Miles qualiﬁed in Musketi'y and Maxim Iieut agun 24th Ociohrr 1916 (Distinguish- d) 5001 eeigi. lei rd quauried in Mosul-try and Maxim gun, 24m October. lgua. (Distinguished).

HS" “e, Kelsey passed Hurt IL Lower Standard IlinduShani, 4th January 1909

1876 Pt .Ogley DHSSed Pnit II, Lower Standard Hindustani, 4th January . 1909.

“juugtrgr. Lock granted iiirlough to miths. “Zomxerzt Rankin granted furlough to 0' ths _ 3657m>erut Rchmond grant/G lurlough six II Ulitllis

England [or six ‘ . . . Lngland 101‘ gm to England for . .

mi? ior‘iil swath granted furlough to England tor su‘ nths. _ ‘ SISImcorp. Pitts granted iurlough to England for Six nioi ths ‘ 5538 Lal|C|"-COI‘K)I. Burnign leave in Lucknow, 28th De,— eeinher. 15:08. to 98th February. .1009. 573]. Pti‘ Allenin to proceed tn lri-nulgherry, 26th Dn— ccuiher, 1905, 10 25th January, 1909.

\Vic he}: to acknowledge \i'iili thanks the receipt

of the following contemporaries: — “ St. George‘s Gazette." " The White Lancer.“ “ The X. R. H. (,Iuyctlc." 'lflie i‘ollriwim.r subscriptions in TI“

Major J. not

lam/II have been received .

A. S. Gladstone. Esq. .. ()l‘iicurs’ Subscriptions, per Mess President Semi .-Insti'iictor Collingwood

190.9.

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS

LIM‘Kxow. INDIA. FIIII'IHUVL 1909.

(mwenl mmuIic/w or Alf-”011413)

.‘ilTo Pie. l‘IallInlenL 5171 ~' Gntland 5705 “ lr’rutt : 7'4 ” Lawrence ; ' Pine

Lillli‘e'CUI‘pl. I’ oi-tnr

Regimental Gazette.

“ -'

A MONTHLY CHRONICLE OF THE ROYAL DRAGOO NS. “ SPECTEMUR AGENDO.”

1. Pic. Allchin from Unattached List. siiuo *[lain to Army Reserve in India, 3rd January.

Llori 1. (iii. c. welt-ii

41m ,— ‘

Zibe..agle.

twelve

years.

1713/ ,I'I‘Ir

by him had bound up his head where a sabre had slashed him. he had a bayonet wound in the breast, and a bullet through the lungs. He had prayed the bearers Lot to move him, but to let him die in peace where he had fallen. Wellesley looked down on him, and the man saw the sorrow in the young commander's face. “ It‘s all right, sir," he said, in gasps. “It’s all in the -day's work." And then the blood gushed out of his mouth.

.. '

e o 5 o.

. .

“ 0

Bchhingmn

H. 'l‘. (:illing. Esq. SUI‘L’L Rittclil'ic St:tl'l'»Hcrgi. do Knock Pie. Ii‘crgusmi Bound copies of Volume II. 190% are can hc had on early application. Price. now ready for szilo. and Rs. :3 (£0-6x-3d) per copy,

W. (i. (L—l’mth sum mer and winter furloughs are grant» ed to non-coinmissimied olii'cers and men. I“. W.—Thanks [or letter. Why not register your name with the N.A.E.R.I) 3.? See our January number. “ I:‘i<i<:n.”—So Nicerutis notorious for " dirtiness and athomes"? There is consolation in the knowled ge that Muttra is clean, healthy, and not overpoweringly social. “()LD Ri.n'Ar..”«Yes. both King‘s and Queen’s medals. “ INriciaiasren."~3i‘35. as reference to “Regime ntal Gazette.” would have informed you. J. B ~Scarcely within our province Try a private letter. E. B‘. W.~He is a nephew. and not a. sonof the old

C. (I. “ IMPA’I‘IEN’I‘ “~"I‘iizinks. we. use it We do not always get the paper out on the 15th, although we try hard.

“CITY Pomemus." ~ Congratulations

"Tiddley-”

Give him our love and draw his attent‘on to the subscription rates. “ IIonBr.”— IVe believe the reason was a sprained ankle. CORI‘ORAL .X.—Can [ind no reference in records. " Bums ”—Plouse spire us. The colour is changed. “ ATKINS ’ ~Aiiy well-known old Royal would give you the information. Try Mr. Finn. H. C P. —You do not acknowledge our Christm as letter. “ His'roRICLis.”~Yes. his ancestor was the great John Churchill who was. of course, Colonel of the Royals There. is much in what you say. “A READER.”—We are far too busy to attend to c0m< plaints, even if you Ilzld reasons. which is doubtful.

MONTHLY NOTES. The recording of the recent social and sporting events in the present number brings with it to us here in Lucknow a sadness, which is not usually to be connected with such gaieties, inasmuch as they practically signal the ﬁnish of the Lucknow season, the end of the glorious “cold'weather,” and con-

sequently the approach of the dreaded dogdays. Already the weather, which has. been for-some weeks past quite. idea], has undergone a change, and the air which, until a few

days ago was crisp and exhilarating, is becoming daily more “soft,” and top-coats and

THE

EAGLE

THE

gloves are being put away for‘their long summer holiday.

Civil Service Week brought the usual large number of visitors to Lucknow, and from January 29th to the 6th instant, races, polo, boxing, dog and horse shows, dances, and the Civil Service Ball kept everybody pleas

antly busy.

On Friday, the third day, Idle was unfortunately sore, and Mr. Miles had to forego the pleasure of another struggle with his pony's victor, April Fool, but riding Captain Grant’s Perquisite in the following race, the Open Pony Chase, he secured third place. In the Old Colvinian Plate, Mr. Cosens’ Umutbee

Captain F W. Barret’s Nonsuch 3 BEST HEAvYWEIGH'r POLO PONY.——Prize, presented by Ofﬁcers of the Royal Dragoons :

looked a certain winner,

Mr. W

The polo consisted of the Tour-

nament for the 15th Hussars Cup, and a few friendly games. An account of the tourna— ment gamein which our team participated. will be found under a separate heading in this number.

but the

unhappy

advent of a stray dog in the middle of the course, threw him out-of his stride, and he ﬁnished second, three‘quarters of a length behind the winner.

Captain Grant's Little Exile ran in the last race of the meeting, but failed to get a place.

We were minus two of our most prominent G. R’s at the Lucxnow Races, Captain To inkinson having but recently returned from home, and Mr. Charrington being still absent on the Viceregal staff. The only oliicers who rode were

Captain

Grant

and

Mr,

Miles,

while Regimental owners were represented

by Captain McNeile, Captain Grrant, Captain Sandbach, Mr. Miles and Mr. Cosens.

The racing commenced on Saturday, 80th

The Calcutta Meeting to which we referred in our last number, was continued after we went to press and provided some successes for the regiment. In the Tally Ho Plato Mr. Rube‘s Chassepot, ridden by Mr. Chirring~ ton, ran third. In the January Plate M r. Cosens scored a success with Arabian Night, whilst the same owner’s 3ull Dog ran second in the Prince of Wales‘ Plate.

ultimo, with an extra meeting, when Captain

Sandbach‘s Double Keys, running extremely well, in spite of carrying i8lbs. overweight,

secured third place in the Pony Hurdles.

the Welter Horse Handicap, Captain Grant’s Vancouver, owner up, ran fifth.

On Monday, February lst, the ﬁrst day of the Spring Meeting, Idle, ridden by its owner, Mr. Miles, only just failed to get ﬁrst place in the Lucknow Military Handicap, a

215» mile chase, being beaten on the post by April Fool who was carrying 2 stone less. On the same day Captain Grant rode his pony

Perquisite to second place in the Closed Pony Chase, being beaten by Result 11 by one and a quarter lengths. The chief event on the second day was the race for the Civil Service Cup, in which the regiment was not represented. But in the Closed Horse Plate Mr. Miles ran a very good

second on Captain McNeile’s White Heather.

The Lucknow Horse Show, most successfully engineered by Captain San dbach as the Honorary Secretary, was held in La Martiniere Park on Saturday, and brought the Civil Service Week to a satisfactory conclu» sion. The entries were numerous and of a high class. The classes in which the Regiment was successful are given below : CHARGERs.—Prize, presented by H. H.

the

Maha-

raja of Cooch Behar: Major-General H. C. Sclater’s Baron l Colonel de Lisle’s Marquis 2 Mr. W. ’1‘. Miles’ Cocos 3 LIGI—l’l‘\VEIGH’l‘ Hiw'rnns, ~ 1:17 prize. presented by Lucknow Race Fund. 2nd Prize, presented by Major Hon’ble A. Hamilton l-lussell: Colonel de Lisle’s Marquis Captain F. W. Barrett’s Fame .. Major Moore’s Hobin .. 3 EEAVYWEIGBT

HUNTERS—Prize,

presented

Mr. W. T. Miles’ Cocos. ‘2 ENGLISH A ND COLONIAL POLO Foams—Prize, presented by Ofﬁcers, The “ King’s Own” Regiment: Mr. H. Nutting’s Rosalea 1 Mr. W, 'l‘. Miles’ Dairyinan

T. Miles’ Dairyman

JUMPING FOR HORSES —Prize, presented by Major Ramsey Gordon :

Major Hon’ble A.

Hamilton Russell’s

Sinbad (Capt. 'l‘omkinson)

L. Saunders, I-C.S.. Commissioner:

Major G. Moore’s Robin (Mr. Durham) Captain W. D. Grant’s Charles (Hartyy Captain J. E. N. Heseltine’s Roseleaf (Owner)

19:

gratulations, and received in reply the fol—

lowing cable gram :-—

“ My Royal Dragoons—Sincere thanks for the friendly birthday wishes.

WILHELM [. it."

The Regiment has just lost the services of one of its senior members in the person of Major the Hon’hle A. Hamilton Russell. who has retired on retired pay. Major HamiL

ton

Russell joined the Royals in October,

1893, and has served continuously in the Regi-

ment up to the present time.

He was all

1 2 3

through the South African. war. where he was severely wounded at the Rustenberg

CHILDREN’S PONIES.—Prize, presented by Captain

Hill affair, whilst second in command of “ C”

VeNeile, the Royal Dragoons: Mr. E. Ruhe’s William Henry

Master G Stockwell’s Holack In the last class the Winner was ridden by

.. ‘2 Master

In the Lucknow All-India Boxing Tournament, the Regiment had but one representative, Sergeant Sutch, who entered for the heavyweight competition. Hevwas drawn against Corporal (“Gipsy”) Smith of the Lincolns, an Indian boxer of considerable

repute.

Squadron. He was mentioned in despatches, and received the King's and Queen‘s medals, Major

Hamilton

Russell, was

promoted

Captain in 1898, and received his majority in

Phillip Burch.

1906. He has for some time commanded “ B” Squadron, to the members of which he has pi esented a silver cup as an annual inter.

troop sports trophy. He takes with him the best wishes of every member of the Regiment

Smith scaled 14st. 8lbs..whileSutch

The majority thus rendered vacant is ﬁlled

barely turned the scale at 18st. 41b5. With this difference in weight, added to Smith’s superior height and reach, and greater experience. Sutch was thought to stand little chance ofsuccess. but contrary to expectations he put up a really excellent ﬁght, and was only beaten by the narrowest margin of points after an extra round. Indeed, in the opinion of many, he was thought to have won.

by Captain McNeile, to whom we offer our

He was the recipient of a prize for the best

loser, and a special prize of a silver cigarette case from Major Williamson,

inscribed

congratulations.

Major McNeile is at present

in com mand of “ D” Squadron. Congratulations also to Captain Tomkinson on his promotion His appointment to the Adjutancy of the Regiment, which takes the same date as his Captaincy, is in succession to Mr. Hodgson whose tenure of ofﬁce has expired. Mr. Hodgson is at present on leave in England, and on his return will, of course. go to Squadron duty.

“ To

Sergeant Sutcb, for grit, from the Referee,”

Raja Tasadduq Rasul Khan, K,C.S.[., of Jehangirabad : Major-General B. C. Sclater’s Baron 1

JUMPING FOR pONIES. . Prize, presented by Mr.

EAGLE

The 27th of January being the anniversary of the birth of our Colonel—in-Chief, the German Emperor, the Regiment cabled its con-

Colonel de Lisle, Captain Tomkinson, Mr Miles, and Mr. Chapman are leaving for Meerut, where they will represent the Regi _ ment in the Inter-Regimental Polo Tournament.

This event will be followed by the

Subalterns’ Polo Tournament

which takes

THE IEIAGLE

TH E EA 6 L113!" place at Ambala, and for-this tournament Mr;

Miles and Mr. Chapman will be joined by Mr. Irwin and Mr. Turner.

Since the foregoing racing notes were written, Mr. Cosens, who is at present shooting in

the Central Provinces, has added a splendid turf success to the Regiment by the performance of his horse Bull Dog at Bombay. At. the races there. on the10th instant, Bull Dog won the City Plate, a mile-and-a-quarter race for horses, value Rs. 6,000. It is made more notable by the fact that Wandin, the recent Viceroy’s Cup-winner, was among the ﬁeld that Bull Dog beat. Several oﬁicers of the Regiment, it is under

stood, will enter for the Kadir Cup, the annual pig-sticking event, which takes place early in April. We would like to see this trophy come to the Regiment. Mr. Rube, who has been on the sick list for some time, is now, we are glad to say, better and has gone for a few days’ change to Naini Tal. He recently passed his probationer’s examination.

Sport in the hunting ﬁeld has been very much handicapped by the drought and heat, and afternoon meets have been almost impossible for these reasons Again the count» ry is limited,

inasmuch as

Lieutenant-General Sir Jocelyn Wédehouse, K C. 8., C.’M.G., Commanding the Northern Army, inspected the stables of the Regiment

on the 16th instant. . Major-General H. C Sciater,

' Commanding

the 8th (Lucknow) Division, made an

inspec-

tion of the institutes of the Regiment a few days later. The remarks of the General Officer Com~

manding

the

Lucknow

Brigade

the

Musketry Progress Return for the quarter ending December Bist, 1908, are: “Very

satisfactory.” The Annual Regimental Assa.ult.at,_A1.mS was held a few days ago, and provided a good afternoon’s sport. There was a large attendance of members of the Regiment and their

friends.

An account of the various events

will appear in our next issue. The annual competition for the de Lisle Sword, the splendid Best-man-at-Arms tro. phy, was recently carried out, the ﬁnal event

being run Off at the assault-at-arms meeting mentioned above. The competition this Year proved very keen and points were very even

right up to the ﬁnish. This will be dealt with fully in our March number. A letter forwarding subscriptions, anda

newspaper cutting dealing with the Rhodes

there are many

family, has been received from Mr. A. 5, more crops than usual.

There was a good

gallop on the l8th instant, but only a small ﬁeld turned out. Hounds found over the pontoon bridge and ran into a small earth near Malhauri station, but soon had the jackal out.

Gladstone. Mr. Gladstone is an old member of the Regiment, so old, indeed, that no one serving at the present time knew him in the regiment. But a silver cup in the Ofﬁcers’ Mess bears the following inscription :_u Captain Allan Maclean and Lieutenant A. S. Glad-

Perhaps the best day was February 20th, stone, on promotion, June 8th, 1870.” We are when there was a ﬁne hunt of ﬁfteen minutes near Bibiapur, and a kill in the open Following this hounds found again and had a good run oftwenty minutes, but the grass being veryhigh, they were run out of scent when

the “ jack.”

Unfortunately

two

hounds died a few days ago from poisoning.

glad to hear from Mr. Gladstone, and trust that he will continue to keep in touch With

his old corps. Our thanks to him for the article, which we hope to use.

still. many and various, The Indian Daily News tells its readers. that it is strongly I‘llmoured the Royals leave this year for South Africa. The Indian Daily Telegraph announces

that the 17th Lancers from Meerut will relieve us at Lucknow leaving it to be thou ght likely that we go to Meerut. It seems most probable, however, that Muttra will be our next station. ’l‘hisis a small rather out-o f. the-way station, with only one unit, cons eqently with very little going in the way of amusement. The district offers excellent shiJcm', and this is apparently its only attraction . The 15th Hussars are at present statione d there. Th—s colour of the cover of The Eagle is again changed. The rather trying blue of last month was unavoidable, no other being in stock at the time. The colour of the present number is not what we should like, but is, we think, prefer-

able to the blue, which was positively offens1ve.

HISTORICE: RECORD ‘Of the First or the Royal Regiment of Dragoons, contain-

ing an account of its formation in the reign of King Charles the Second, and of its subsequent services to the present time. By General C. P. de Ainslie.

(Continued) On the lst of November, Major-General 'Slade's brigade, consisting of the 4th R. I_ Dragoon Guards, the Royals and the 12th Light Dragoons, was ordered to advance to take its turn of duty at the outposts, and was cantoned in the villages of Ettiero, Gallegos, Espeha and El Bodon. The service was light, one squadron of the Royals, with one of the 12th under Captain Phipps 0f the former, was detached to El Bodon in attendance upon

Major-General Craufurd sional reconnaissances

Rumours regarding the Regiment’s destinv

ation in the forthcoming relief season, are

who made occain

the

vicinity

Rodrigo. The great objection here was the \want of straw for which the long-withered

grass was a very poor substitute.’ besides ﬁlling the horses’ stomachs with worms to a frightful extent. At this time Mr. Hawes, the

Commissary, who had been so long attached to the regiment, and of whom, though in other respects a good sort of man, they had so much cause to compiain, was succeeded by Deputy Assistant Commissary-General France. On the 27th of November, their time of service at the outposts having expired, the brigade was relieved by a brigade of German cavalry, and fell back to Sorero Peres, Slade’ s head-quarters being at Nevada, when. much to the astonishment of everyone, instead of continuing their route to permanent quarters in the rear, the regiment was ordered to resume its post in front; the 12th were de— tained at Nevada, and on the 2nd of Decemher,

the Royals

once

returned

Espeha. On the 6th the different brigades resumed their former stations, the Royals concentrating at Sorero Peres, whence

the 91h, they took up winter quarters at Neda and Travoca, head-quarters at the former, where in all respects they found excellent accommodation, both for men and horses. On the 9th of January, 1812, an order suddenly arrived for the brigade to advance, and Lord Wellington investing Ciudad Rodrigo, the Royal Dragoons took post at the village of

Villa

Crossina, about

two and a

quarter miles from the city, where also Slade had his head-quarters. On the evening of the 19th, the cannonade from Rodrigo was heard to be particularly heavy, when about 10 PM. it ceased, a certain indication that the place

had fallen, and on the following

morning

the garrison marched out prisoners of war ; the same day the weather began to break and settled into violent and continuous rain, which lasted throughout the whole of the month following. At Villa Crossina a month’s pay wasissued, which, unhappily for the time, occasioned

3 great disorder

THE in the regiment, and one

case of peculiar gravity must be noted, being that of a dragoon named Coutts, who attacked and ill~treated Sergeant Currie in so brutal a manner, that being tried by Court-martial,

he was sentenced to receive 900 lashes, of which 710 were inﬂicted, the remainder being reserved until he should have recovered; these last 190, however, were never inﬂicted. About thelast day in January, the Royals commenced their return to their old quarters, the last day’s march being 3 leagues to Carassarda. Between Villa Tu rpina and Pinto runs the Goa, the fords of which river, in

general but kneedeep, were now so swelled by excessive rains, that it was necessary to send the baggage round by the bridge of Almeida, thus causing a delay of three days,

EAGLE THE Viciosa, all more or less good towns. This» ﬁne province of Alemtejo is almost wholly over-run with gum-cistas and im mense forest s of cork trees.

From Villa. Viciosa the Royals,

crossing

to Santa Martha in Spain, and on the day

Eskine, Bart, commanding the cavalry, and

following to Villafranca, where they remained to the 19th, and thence to Ribuera with a

outposts of Sir Rowland Hill’s corps. The French cavalry opposed to them was commande by General l‘Allemann. The head—

squadron at Caniosa, the French occupying Avnandros, about 3 leagues distant. The brigade remained several days at Ribuera under the orders of Lieutenant-General Sir Thomas Graham in Spanish Estremadura,

From Villa Viciosa, Slade’s brigade moved

during which the regiment was at Travalko

at the extremity of Estremadura Palia.

and in crossing whatin summer

was

This

but a

small rivulet, Mr. Warner was washed his horse and drowned.

off

St. Jao de Presquere is a large, ill-built and dirty village on the Douro, carrying on a considerable wine trade with Oporto, and here with an infamous market, theinhabitants ill-disposed. and in complete dulness, the

Royals passed ﬁve weeks. With the ﬁrst week in March came orders for the march of the brigade into the Alemtejo, proceeding by Thomar t0 Abrantes,

thence through Gabion,

Crato, Aldea de

Cabron, Cabela. de Vidi Estremos,

and Villa-

quarters of Sir Rowland Hill and of

there to surprise the squadron, but captured only the sergeant and his picket ; and continuing their advance they came upo Major Dorville and his squadron formed up and ready to receive them, upon which the brigade retired, followed by the Royals for a certain distance, who then returned

to their

position. (To be continued.)

the

infantry were in general at Almendralejo. On the 14th of May occurred the brilliant affair of Alinarez, and on the 17th the Royal Dragoons being at ltibucra with a squadron

SOUTH AFRICAN LETTERS. ELANDSBERG, TRANSVAAL, 27th February, l901. DEAR M,—

at Usagre and a picket under Cornet Trafford

to Santa Martha, thence to Villafranca, and

and St. Jao de Presquere without it.

horses only could go abreast, and on the least deviation to the right or left, they instantly lost their footino. One private of the name of Acheson going two yards to his right was instantly swept away by the stream, and both man and horse perished. Arriving at Travano and St. Jan de Presquere, the head—quarters were established at the latter, the roads during the last day’s march having been almost impassable,

Cotton with Ponsonby’s and Slade’s brigades, the latter returning to Ribuera and Villal‘ranca, at which place Were also the headquarters of Lieutenant-General Sir William

the Guadiana on the 16th of March, continued

thence to Ribuera, whence after a few days it retired to Berlinga, a considerable place

ford at the Goa proved indeed so deep, that it was not passed without much difﬁculty, Two

pursued by Lieutenant-General Sir Stapleton

E A Gr L E

At this period the siege of Badajos was in progress, and some idea of the nature of the service required of the Royal Dragoons may be gathered from the circumstances that “Captain Kennedy Clarke was ordered to proceed to Campilla, from thence to hover about the neighbourhood of Llerena della Creusa. He was then detached with twenty men from any part of the army, at least fifty

miles, was obliged to keepa constant look-out never to enter a village, except for an hour or two, and night and day constantly to change his position. For ten days and nights Clarke continued in performance in this painful duty, although the nights in Estremadura are eX-

at Lleria, General l’Allemann, with four regiments of Dragoons,

made a night advance

and drove in this picket with a loss of four or

ﬁve men, when the regiment falling back to Villal‘ranca, there joined the 3rd Dragoon Guards, the brigade spending the night of the 125th drawn up in the wood near the town, l’Allemaun, who only wanted to make a re connaissance, retired to Hermandes.

On the 20th of the month the regiment paraded for the purpose of witnessing the punishment ofa corporal and six privates, who had on the 17th previous got drunk un» der circumstances peculiarly scandalous. Being on picket Villa Garcia, during the night they had stopped and plundered a train of mules passing through with a supply of aquadente ; and being tried by Court-martial, they were sentenced, the corporal to be re-

tremely cold and dewy, in excessive contrast

duced to the ranks and to receive 600 lashes,

to the burning heat of the day; all added to an unhealthy climate, want of food, want of rest, and great anxiety." Badajos fell on the 6th of April, when the Earlof Wellington, going into the north, left a force, including Major-General Slade’s brigade, in Estremadura under Lieutenant-General Sir Rowland Hill. The head-quarters of the French cavalry,

the privates to 400 lashes each, which were

commanded by General Soult, retired from Villafranca the day after the fall of Badajos,‘

intlicted. On the 2ch, a squadron

under

Major

Dorville posted at Lleria, 'ciscerlaininer

that

the French cavalry under General l’Allemann

were threatening his post, the Major, leaving a sergeant’s picket in Lleria,

with a suppdrt

at aford acrossasmall brook in front of a wood, behind which he withdrew his squadron after dark, the French entire brigade at three in

the morning entered

Lleria,

expecting

We left Newcastle on the 6th instant, halt. ing at 7 RM. on the open veldt= where we offsaddled, fed our horses, lit tires and made We had hardly swallowed it, when a

tea,

severe thunderstorm burst, and in avery short time the veldt resembled a lake. We walked, talked, smoked, laughed and chatfed tillthe storm was over and the moon up. (1 A.M.), then on with the saddles and off to Dannhauser, where we snatcheda few winks before daybreak. Resuming our march at 8 A.l\l , by noon we were under lntanyatma mountain (pronounced with three clicks and a gurgle) ;here we “anchored down” till midnight, then made tracks to DeJagers drift (on the DundeeVryheid road), a distance of five hours, where we remained during the day. Next morning we heard our destination had been altered, and we were ordered to Um.

bana (mentioned in my last letter). Two days of long and hot marches brought us to this latter place on the 10th where we heard we were to join some more troops to take a big convoy

through

General

French who

would be at, or near, Pietretief, a town near the Swaziland border. On the 12th we marched across the Buffalo ﬂats to the town of Utrecht which lies at the foot of the Belalasberg. At 4 A.M., on the morning of the 13th, together with 200 Natal Volunteers, two ﬁeld

'24

THE.EAGLE

guns and a naval twelve-pounder, we (150 strong) climbed up the pass, and at 8A.M. were engaged with 250 Boers, who were driv-

en back. Our people buried ten of the enemy while our casualties were one man wounded. All that day and the next, the convoy was toiling up the steep pass—two hundred and ﬁfty wagons each drawn by sixteen oxen, making the respectable total of four thousand head of cattle. in addition there was the regimental transport drawn by teams of twelve mules. Whilst the convoy was coming up on the second day, my troop, a troop of the 5th Dragoon Guards, and one of the Natal Volunteers, went out on reconnaissance and located the enemy at Spitzkop, 8 miles away. We opened ﬁre, and under cover of this, drove

off some cattle,

retiring to camp after ascertaining the enemy’s strength. On the 15th. the convoy being ready, we inspanned, and trekked, the Royal Dragoons being the advance guard, and my troop advanced scouts. Spread well out with ears and eyes on the alert we moved forward several miles; all was calm and peaceful. Baiting presently by a clear, crystal stream, the squadron leader who was with the advanced troop said. “You had better fill your water-bottles here," and had hardly finished speaking, when the “ flip flop" of the mauser

was heard, and bullets came singing round our ears.

“ Dismount," was the order, and

away went the horses, one man to four, to a donga, where they were out of sight. We ran forward, dropping down behind out-hills, small rocks, or anything that afforded cover, and there wasn’t. much: whiz, whiz. whiz, came the bullets, striking the ground witha ﬂop and throwing up litte spurts of dust, or with a crack and a shrill scream from a ricochet ed a rock. My party of twelve men were lying Widely scattered, and we soon located the enemy on a ridge, 1,300 yards distant, and re—

turned the ﬁre. After a few minutes up came our maxim and commenced grinding out bullets at the rate of 400

per minute.

Then

THE

our “ Cow” gun came into action on a hill in rear, the shells humming and shrieking over our heads and bursting along the ridge which, if nothing more serious, had the effect of disturbing the Dutchmen‘s aim. After half-adozen shells the Boers ceased ﬁre, and we galloped up to the ridge just in time to give them a parting shot. On the other side of this ridge there was afarm, and we return» ed to our bivouac with a couple of fat geese on each saddle. Up to this the weather had been ﬁne, but on the 16th

the

clouds were

low on the berg, and it commenced raining.

We went out earlv in the morning, but could not see ﬁfty yards except at short intervals when the clouds lifted. We returned at mid-day, the convoy remaining stationary; a regular beast of a day : cold, wet, and miserable. Next morning we were up at halfpast three.

It was still raining, and thick,

but we moved off at 4-30 .-\.M., my troop be— ing escort to the naval gun. The weather cleareda bit at mid-day, and our advanced scouts were ﬁred upon from the Elandsberg, a big mountain range we had to cross. Our gun came into action,

also

the

other guns,

but we ourselves had nothing to do except watch the shells bursting on the mountain. As the convoy outspanned near where the guns had been in action, we had not far to go. The clouds settled down and it rained steadily all night. The following morning was again wet and thick, and we started out at 4 A.M., and forded the Pivaan River, a deep, swift

stream withalovely waterfall, and rode up the mountain. After reconnoitring and seeing no trace of the enemy, we returned to the convoy which did not move. On the 19th the convoy got across the river and on to the berg. In some cases three spans (forty-eight) of oxen had to be used to pu'll the wagons across, the rain having made the road almost impassable. These roads are mere tracks, of course, and are not metal-

led. My troop was on the left iiank on the 7 berg, about 4 miles out, and we became fogbound for two hours. We had to bait and put

entries on front, ﬂanks and rear. Next day, the 20th, the convoy managed to get down about a mile ; we were out all day and once more got wet to the skin. Fifteen Boers surrendered ; they all had long water-proofs. and some water-proof overalls reaching well up the thighs. Our cloaks are absolutely useless to keep one dry, becoming soaked after a few hours’ rain—a long water—proof would certainly bea more useful article in this country, except for cold weather. when. of course. we swear by the cloak. It continued to rain all night and the following day. The troops were in a deplorable condition, wet through to their skins. No shelter, no place to sleep, except in mud. and nothing to cover them except a soaked cloakvand an equally wet blanket. By the 22nd, the wagons were hope' lessly stuck, some only up to their axles, others deeper. The troops were put on half rations, but in spite of their being cold, wet, and hungry, they never lost their spirits

and sat round in the mud and rain, singing songs, and laughing and chafﬁng as if they were on a picnic. On the 28rd we saw the sun and a bit of blue sky for the ﬁrst time for seven days ! We managed to get a dozen wagons through to

Chakas Spruit on the Pongola River, near Liineberg. We had to sling the boxes and sacks across by a wire cable. General Dartnell’s Column was on the other side and with General French’s force had been living my a week on mutton and green mealies, and water. I have nothing further to add at .present, except that it is still raining ! Yours,

OL-OL. LUCKNOW POLO TOURNAMENT.

EAGLE

others being the Royals, 15th Hussars, Rifle Brigade, and the West Riding Regiment, all of whom contested the cup last year. In the opening game the 17th Lancers defeated the Rifle Brigade (last year’s win— ners) by 8 goals to 3. In the semi-final round the Royals were matched against the 17th Lancers, and a fast

hard-riding game ended in a win for the 17th. The West Ridings scratched to the 15th Hussars who thus came into the ﬁnal uncontested, The game between the 17th and the Royals is described below from the account which appeared in the Indian Daily Tel/graph. Without Colonel de Lisle, and with (‘aptain Tomkinson justout from home, and consequently somewhat out of practice, and riding strange ponies, our side did not expect to win. but they put up a really excellent game, the disparity of the scores being no indication of the actual difference in the teams, The teams were the 17th Lancers :—Mr. H. S. Nutting, Capt. Melville, Major Tilney, Capt. Lockett (back), and the Royal Dragoons ; Mr. A. El. D. Chapman, Mr. C. W. Turner, Capt. Tomkinson and Mr. W. T. Miles (back). lst chu/cker.—Fr0m the throw in, the Lancers took the ball up immediately to the Dragoons’ goal, but it rolled past the posts. Once more they brought the ball down and again itjust missed the posts, but a third attempt, within a few minutes of play, proved successful. The Lancers, on the change over,

kept the gamein the vicinity of the Dragoons’ goal, and afterashort but sharp struggle, soored again. Lancers. 2 goals. Sud chukka—The Dragoons had a run up to the Lancers’goal, but the ball was soon transferred to the other end of the tield, and after two attempts, the Lancers added to their score.

The remainder of

the c-hulclcer

XV Hussxas’ CUP. Among the attractions of the Civil Service "Week was the polo tournament. for a cup

.presented by the 15th Hussars.

The only

\fresh entry was the 17th Lancers’ team, the

was a struggle near Lancers, 3 goals.

the Dragoons' goal.

3rd chuklrer.—-By far the best ohukker of

the evening, the Dragoons played up, and if their mounts had been superior, would have

’l‘ H E

hen EAGLE

”a met with better success.

It was on the scund

SERGEANTS’ MESS NOTES.

of the bugle that the Lancers, with a long shot, scored— Lancers, 4 goals. 41h chchlcer.—The Lancers added two more goals in this chnkker, and throughout, almost had the game in the Dragoons‘ ground. Lan— cers, 6 goals ; Royal Dragoons, nil.

There has been another departure from among us since last I wrote, namely, Ser-

5111 chuklmx—On restarting after half-time, the play which was conﬁned principally to the Dragoons’ ground, was fast and exciting. The Dragoons got away the ball frequently, but were always pulled up at midﬁeld. Towards the end of the chukka, the Lancers' efforts were rewarded with success—Lan-

ment in the South African war, where he had the misfortune to be wounded. He was for a number of years a fine man— at-arms, and invariably figured prominently in Regimental and other tournaments. “ Ben“ had a peculiar gift of humour, and was quite an amusing story-teller. He left for England, accompanied by his wile and family by the Transport “ Dongola." which sailed on the 17th instant. Prior to his departure, the members of the Mess held an in good-bye, formal gathering to bid him and to present him with a silver watch. Mrs Harman received a present of live pounds from the members. Mayg000d fortune atten them both in the old countiy, whe1e, latei, we hope to renew the friendship

cers, 7 goals ; Dragoons, nil.

(it/1 chukker—The Lancers were attacking

‘ vigorously whena foul

was given against

them and they had to play out from their own goal. On the hit out, the Dragoons got on to

the ball and with a pretty shot Capt.

’l‘om-

kinson scored The Lancers, however, quickly added to their score. Lancers, 8 goals ;

‘ Dragoons, 1. 7th chukker.—The game for

the

greater

part of the chukker was in the Lancers’ ground the Diagoons playing up well and continuously attacking. and eventually put up

their second goal. They 1esumed thei1 attack,

geant Bar man, who takes his discharge from the Regiment after nearly nineteen years’ service. “ Ben" Harman joined the Royals

in December, 1890,aud served with the Regi.

So they depart, and so they come.

Several

new members have entered the Mess recently, and there is promise of even more in the near future. As I Wiite these notes, we are busy with

but the Lancers got

away and put the ball

prepaiations foi our Annual Relief of Lady-

between the posts.

Lancers, 9 goals; Dra.

Smith Ball which takes place on the 31d of next month. Invitations to some tive hun

goons, 2. 81h chukker.—There was no scoring during this chair/oer. Both teams alternately attack ed, and there was some hard riding. ‘Final score: l7th Lancers, 9 goals ; Royal , Dragoons, 2. -T,1mpz'7es:——(‘aptains Barrett and Bassett.

In the ﬁnal game the 15th Hussars met the 17th Lancers, and after asplendidgcame came out winn’e1s‘ by 8 goals to 2,thus winning . ~ ~ =1 their own cup ,

The ground was inexcellent conditlon and refl‘im‘s_c1édit on theSecretary 'a11'dhis Assist ‘ ants, to whose energies this wasd’de

December toeke up an appointment in the Suirey Imperial Yeomaniy, we lesson that he has .1111ved in England after an uneventful voyacre and is located at Clapham, the head. quaitei s of his new ("01pS,Wh(~¥1‘e he is settl-

ing comfortably in veiy pleasant quarters He has seen Captain Hardwick, who inquired afterihe members of the

Moss, and sent

us his regards. SSM.

Allen,

S. QM. S. Lawrence, Ser-

geant Goddard and Sergeant-Farrier Marland were among those who attended the wedding of Lord and Lady Charles Fitzmau rice in Calcutta. As accounts of the ceremony appeared in most of the English and Colonial papers, itis unnecessary to deal with it here. Suffice it to say, that the above members

were considerably impressed with all they saw, and enjoyed the few days in Calcutta. The Sergeants’ Mess Riﬂe Club annual meeting took place 011 the 28th ultimo, when nearly every member was present. Marquees were erected on the range, wherein meals were served, thus enabling the lengthy programme to be got through without intervals. The shooting was not of the distinctly good class, the day being very windy and dusty. classiﬁed.

Each member had been

tlt may be mentioned that Military dances in this countryvinvariably take

place on a

CLASS A.

Wednesday, the reason being that :Thursday is the militaiyall day holiday, and there is thus time to recovei fiom the ext1a stiain

. involved, and s0“ stnike off trueand united” - .. on Friday moming. ' ' '1 1 In ‘a lettex from Sergeant- Majoi Stuait ' ﬁwbos it will bel.remvembered;.l. 6%..us ﬁdlty in

151911211:

Writing Case, Sergt. Rapkin

..13E) points

that H 3rd. -‘ 4”,, u

Case. of Razors, “ Oxford Silver Spoon, R.Q.M.S‘. Sykes “ “ S‘.Q.M.S. lieall

137 .. 13:1 132

3,1,], 4th

.. ..

Silvei Watt-h Sergt.Ri1-hmond

“

.. 123 points.

119

Rickeard

‘ Spoon, S‘S‘.Q,.M. Fo1d011 u 1. H. Norton 1.. :1. (:1

.. 112 .. 10'?

“ “

(miss (1, '

.. S F. Brash 1st Prize : Gold Ring, S. . Be111 Sergt s, Razor of Case “ End l‘arr,l\11,arland.. 3rd. .. , , Siulver Spoon, Sgt: llh

" -Sergt.Elu1«

FOOTBALL. The Regiment is making another bid for supremacy in this sport, and so far promises well. A team has been selected to compete in the Murray Cup Tournament which has

just commenced here. and they have shaped very creditably1n the fiiendly matches and the one Cup match111 which they have taken

part.

The two new battalions in Lucknow

are the Highland Light Infantry,

and the

3 points.

.1 ‘

good football sides. The results of the games with these have been in our favour, as in four games, two against each battalion, we won {two and drew two

In the first IOund of [the Murray Tourna— ment, we dleW a bye, as did all the other teams except two and we then were matched

against the Es sex Regiment who have lately

CLASS B.

131. Prize:

TheFalling Plate competition for the Steele Cup was won by “C" Squadron. A six- round contest has been arranged, and will be held at Ambala shortly, between Sergeant Sutch; and Corporal Smith of the Lincolns. Although Smith is by far the more experienced boxer, the ﬁght which recently took place in Lucknow, was by no means an easy thing for him. Sutch put up a rattling show, and lost only by a small margin of points. We wish him luckin his second attempt to lower the colours of the redoubtable “Gipsy.” The Mess offer congratulations to Major McNeile and Captain Tomkinson on their recent pro motion.

King’s Own Regiment. both of which have

ing to his skill with the riﬂe, under three headings, so that none had cause for com. plaint The winners of the different classes and thei1 prizes are given heieunder :~

and “

accord-

dred persons have been issued, and there will

in all probability be a large gathering. March 3rd is not, of course, the date Lady. Smith was relieved, but it is the nearest con. venient date.

iEAGLE

come from Bu1 ma, and me stationed at Sitar pui, about forty miles north of Lucknow. We knew nothing 9f~th€ll form, and consequently were considerably exercised as to theissue of eur meeting. The game came off a few daysago.o.n oui ground, be-

fore a big crowdof spectators

Our team

consisted. of1+ Goal: Tiumpetei, yvatspn Backs ;’Corpb1a.l Seaton and PteHelliwell

EAGLE

Half-backs; Sergeant Jeffery, Pte. Boyles and Pte. Ashworth, Forwards; Pie. Hart, Moore and Pte. Duckworth.

The opening half of the game was keen and

-2\"

good to watch, Our forwards worked well together, and the defence was always equal to any of the Essex attacks Within ten minutes from

the

start,

McDouall scored

from a scrimmage near the goal, and shortly afterwards Duckworth added another point, leaving us at half-time with a lead of 2—0, On resuming, play fell off a good deal, and except for one or two bursts, was not very interesting. The Essex men seemed to be done, and our men played rather carelessly, the‘ ball being much tOo often in the air. Only one very pretty piece of combination on the right wing distinguished the latter part

of the game and terminated in another point for our side, the ball being cleverly headed into thenet by McDouall from a nice centre by Hart. For our side Seaton was a host in himself, and Eelliwell, too. played a sound game. Boyles at centre half proved useful, and in the forward line, Marlow, Hart and MoDouall were most noticeable. The team as a whole is a good one, and with good sound training and practice should go well in the tournament. The only squadron match to record was played a week or two back between “C”

and “ D” squadrons, and resulted in a win for "G" by 2—4. Mr. Wilson Fitzgerald turned out for “ C ” and was very useful at back, whilst Mr. Edwardes ﬁgured in the half-back line for “ D” Squadron.

(the ~agle.

\'-

A MONTHLY CHRONICLE OF THE ROYAL DRAGOONS. “SPECTEMUR AGENDO.”

lst (Royal) Dragoonswldent. Henry A. Tomkinson. Adjutant, to bc Captain under the provisions of article ‘30, Royal Warrant. 1007. 22nd Dereinhnr,10 08. Extract dated Srlnd January “109:7 X-

'3“

VOL. III.

€€~

1st (Royal)

‘X'

Dragoons—Captain H. I).

EDITORIAL NOTICES. LUi'KNUW, INDIA.

Major riot? Hon. A. Hamilton Russell . retired. dated 27th January, 1009.

.ll/II'v‘ll, 1909. Subsr'rlp/imzs 10 “T1115 Eur/la" an m: _/'ullou'.v :~

‘

Courses. 4670, S. S. Wright passed examination at completion of Veterinary Class, Anibala. 5003, S. S.Giles do 324, Pte. Fox passed examination in care and repair of small—arms at Allahabad. Transfers. 5109, Lee. Corpl. Clarke to Army Reserve in India. 7220, Pte. Freestone from South Lancasllire Regiment. Moves.

4479, S.S.M.R.R. Cope to Sargodha as Line Overseer at Remount Depot. 5717, Corpl. Strath to England on furlough. 5461. Ptc. Lawson to England as Invalid. 322, Pte. Butt-hart to England as Invalid.

Pension.

London Gazette.

ll llomw

“(2’

”5 7.5-0

("0 Thr‘ Royal lbw/(Irwin.

,lll I‘n/iillrnicrs will he rich/Lou‘ler/r/rd iIL

l/Ir net-l number off/Lo [mpn' publishul hﬂn' i'a'ripl . subscribers C/lflllf/illﬂ their addresses. pron-ruling ()IL

loan 01‘

furlmmh. or leaving the [fer/£112“)! should notify the Editor 0f the new (Hill) .1 [ll/(Hell number of bad" rnpim‘ are hep! in slur-1‘ «all an; be had

on (tpvlz'ru/io/L (o the Edi/01‘. .lll cmunzznzim/imis iltlmrlml for pizlilimlion lit " The Ear/Ir " should be written. ”It 012+ sill)? off/m 1m1m' only, addressed to tlm Elli/or, (Hill should hr drum/111ml it'll by {he ll‘]'ll€l"8 mum ([1sz address. Thr [Jill/01‘ will not mulertuhc’ to be 7'63p0nﬂibl e for (my i’ﬁjédt/l _l[S.. nor in rrlm'zt (my t'mill'lbullmt znzlrss spa‘lully desired to do m. (y'ozzlribulimzs Shonlvl H-Ilrh. the Editor not lulrl' (halt 7/16 .7/h of each mun/h. (0 mszu'u publication {It [hm ”MIN/1'8 issue.

Jhmbw's. 121ml (llbll prev-121‘. or lhu‘r ‘I'irmls (Ire (Is/ml [o non/mnnz'l'alr t0 lhr lyrlifm' any ilt'llL of urn-x ll/l'rli/ x.) hr of interest [0 our l'('([([(']'.\‘. 1/ him/[writ Ito/iced particularly (7th noun: or‘ ar-zm-Iuba’s is I'M/(111ml with m'ul/ I'll’tl’ml by [ll-men! Royals, (lllll such «oz/mm. ulna/ion» (”'4‘ My warns of (rs/«blixhinn <1an main/(lin ing thul [I'll/1‘ bélll'l‘éll purl (uul [WHY/II. which, is [he [II'L'I/uil'l/ "IL/H" oft/19 IJlljlt'l‘. y'lll' Iz‘ill/m'J'iu'i/m’ inrilex 7'€(Illr'/'l\‘ l0 Sill/III” to him (my inquiz'im ”with he mayhuzhl/ I0 iuirzz'u' by rthrmt (If Illll‘illﬂlll’cess to

///r li’u/illievii‘<il rurm'zlx.

‘lhrsr irlll. as fur (m possiblr. be Ila/ll

Ii'ilh mull /' “ _lll.\‘ll'tl'.\' m l‘m'l'ixp0/zvlrnlx.”

ll'hrre necessary. a reply

by Zl[t(’l' will be null. Palmyra)».‘li/ivrr/iw/liwuis L’lllb br izscu'lui‘lir/l 0n (unili'rrllz'mi l0 l/Il/ [villi/01'.

Furlong/h.

5811, Pte. Snelling awarded pension at the rate of 15 pence per diem for 12 months, conditional.

at»

nsi’nietlnfh'r‘él's rim] 71ml 1

Price 1m- mm/ In ml .. .. ._ o-s-u J'I'it'epwl' 001w It) Mirth/11m{win/zmlo/n‘crrx and mm .. .. 0-4-41 Subsm'inlihnx are due in ”drum/I (1/in .x-hmil/l he sent (0 [he Edit/u"

Scrricc. 5123, Corpl. Pegg extended to complet012 years. 5132, Corpl. Kite extended to complete 12 years.

“

llfifémil2:7“an or //-'i*ll’lly(lI-\")'. l I], [MIL-u

3938, Sergt. Norton to he S.Q.M.S. c3160, Unpaid Lance-Sergeant Smallwood to he Paid Lee.Sergeant. 5456, Lee-Corp]. Perks to he Corporal. 5430, Unpaid Lee—Corp]. Cast to be Paid Lee -Corporal. :‘ 4, Unpaid Lee—Corp]. Hurn to be Paid Lee—Cor poral. " '28, Pte Richardson to he Unpaid Lne.»Co rporal.

REGIMENTAL GAZETTE.

1:" (nun/m ..

Promotions and Appointments.

Deaths. to be

Adjutant nice W. T. Hodgson,22nd December, 1908.

Scrgt. >Mnjor Cope .. ., Cooke . ., . ( orke Mr. A. Di‘lmil SCI'KCKU’IE Sulcs

9(-

McNeile to

5195, Pte. Sutton to Roorkee, 151'. February, 1909, to 7th February, 1909.

Extract dated 22nd December, 1908:— 15:,(Royal) Dragoons—Lieut. Henry A. Tomkinson

MONDAY, MARCH 15TH, 1909.

1st (Royal) Dragoons ., Major the Hon. A. Hamilton Russell retires on retired pay (January 27thi.

311, Pte. MeNeilage at Station Hospital, Lucknow, 4th February, 1909.

We be: to acknowledge with thanks the receipt of the follow. S .*

111;! L‘OnLCIllDOI‘:

. "$1. (inorgc‘s Gazette." " The White Lancer," “ The X. R. H. Gazette.” The following subscriptions to T/m Ear/ll have been received :— Mr. I“. A. Urn . . . . . . . . ﬁ' J. Crou-l xv, Esq. ,. . .

l’. R. I. (Sale of copies)

Scrgcun t-Instructor May

. .

\Vcbb

. .

Hounscll ..

.. .. II. Q. M.

Martin Weston Rankin Lamb ‘ykes

P. R. 1. (Sale ofconies

iaieH_—>—~io

McDonall, Pte.

1r—IA-h-MIDHINJI’RJ—I

Corporal Marlow, Corporal

Extract dated 6th January, 1900:— *

1st Life (w‘uards—Sergeant-Mztjor Plumb, 1st (Royal) Dragoons, to he Riding Master with honorary rank of Lieutenant nice Hony Major D. Hall. retired Jami» ary 1st, 190.0.

3 o

THE

Post free

President, Corporals‘ Moss Regimental Libra '

Bound copies of Volume 11.1905. are now ready for sale. and can he had on early application. Price. Rs. 5 (£0-Gs-8d) per copy,

ANSWERS TO CORR ESPONDENTS. A. 15., MHOW.»Thanks for letter.

Glad to hear Pepper

and Fox are doing well. Is Pepper still in the S. and T‘ Corps 1’ Fox is of course in the Inniskillings ‘? W. F.~.\Iany thanks for letter and cutting. Yours is the fourth we have received on the same sad subject. l\IICK.—The true version is, we believe, that when relieving another Troop Sergeant, and determin ed to check each item thoroughly. he remarked severely 2 “ I shall take over nothing that‘s not here” ! PRIVATE A. B.—S‘ee reply to \V. F. Thank you.

Vrcorira ——.\lerci beaucoup, mais le jeu n’en vaut pas la chundelle. 10. R.—Perfectly true, but rather personal. Still he might have. lrmgliul when he was asked 1 J, ’1‘. 11.7'l‘he wearing of the eagle as a cap badge for olijcers was sanctioned by Her late Majesty on Noyem. ber 18th, 1851. APRIL limo—No, the annual clothing compensation is discontinued from this month. You will of course get the quarterly allowance under the new system, \V. B —Yonr sub. was acknowledged in February numiiep, a copy of which was sent you. Sending another copy. Smut —Corporal Vanson did not compete for the dc . ' Lisle word last year. II G.—Ilopo you are enjoying your holiday. The omewnzit better at present .. .k.~'l‘he team will most likely enter for the Bombay cup S. C. l'.—Thank you. We make use of it.

Conrormr. MAC.~Thank you.

\\_e have had to con'0RD1C1:|.Y OFFICER—”The Lqucliiilg Club meet” \VuS

dense it owing to space. HopeNyou will come along again. 31r.ll‘s term for it, not “ FourAin-hand Parade.” E. R. (1) Yes. (‘3) Yes, brothers. (3) Dart- notveuture in opinion.

THE‘EAGLE '1‘HE‘E.A.G,LE MONTHLY E-NOTES.

With the month ofﬁMarch the hot weather may be said to have commenced, and many members of the Regiment have begun to

make preparationsifor spending, at any rate, part of that time away from Lucknow. Several officers are going home at the beginning of April, while six non-commissioned officers have already departed on six months' furlough. A number of nonrcommissioned officers and men, including the draft of the

Regiment; proceeds to Manora, near Naini Tal, on the lst of April, and with them the

Regimental pack of hounds. , Mr. Cosens and Mr. Jump,‘ following in the footsteps of Captain Grant and Mr. Turner, intend shootinglin Mysore for the ﬁrst three

months of the leave season.

If they do as

well as their forerunners they will have no cause to complain. ' Those interested in pig-sticking have already begun operations. Last month Captain Lambert and Mr. Atkinson proceeded to Kheri where the latter secured 2 pig, while Mr. Irwin went to Meerut, with the object of

trying possible pigstickers. On the 10th of March Colonel de Lisle, Captain Lambert, Captain Sandbach, Mr. Atkinson and Mr. Rube proceeded to Palia where, as usual, Mr. Faunthorpe, 1.0.8., is entertaining a party on his excellent pig sticking ground. Besides the party, Colonel de Lisle excepted, who have gone to Palia, Major Wood, Mr. Miles, Mr. Irwin and Mr. Edwardes will

all compete in the Kadir Cup. them success.

We wish

We offer our heartiest congratulations to

Major McNeile and

Miss

Leon who have

recently become engaged to be married, and welcome the latter into the Regiment Miss

Leon has been staying with her cousin Major Wood, during the last cold weather, and has been an enthusiastic and persevering follower

of hounds. The wedding, as at present arranged, will take place in London in July.

Major Wood and Major McNeile are now . escorting Mrs. Wood and Miss Leon on a tour in Southern India preparatory to the departure of the two latter for England. Major and Mrs, Makinsleft for home ten days ago, and we trust M is Makins will soon be again in the test of health. It may interest our readers to'hear that at the recent meeting between King Edward and the German Emperor in Berlin, our Colonel-in-Cliief wore the uniform of the Regiment. We have lately received a visit from a German ofﬁcer, Count von Kanitz, of the 2nd Uhlans of the Guard, who showed alively

tlat, and a third place to Mr. Miles (the ﬁrst two being dead-heated) on White Heather. Later at Ambala, Mr, Miles secured two ﬁrsts with White Heather and a second with The Colonel, both of which horses he has now got-on racing terms hem Major McNeile. Mr. Charrington whois still on the Viceroy’s staff, has maintained his reputation as a jockey. Besides securing a place in several races, he won a race for Mrs. Danger at Cal‘ cutta on February 20th.

interest in the men and horses of the regi-

The hunting season is now drawing to a close, and in spite of better sport latterly we cannot regard it as a successful one. Except in a. few limited districts ‘j-rick’ have been very scarce, and scent, except in the very

ment.

early mornings, indifferent.

We have before had similar visits

from other German ofﬁcers, and the opportunity of seeing ourselves through the eyes of foreigners will always be welcome. The interest of Polo enthusiasts has lately been centred at Meerut, where the annual

Inter-Regimental Tournament has just been held. Although we were defeated in the ﬁrst match we played, yet we can congratulate our team on having provided quite the most We exciting match of the tournament. were greatly strengthened by the combination of Colonel de Lisle and Captain Tomkinson who have not previously played together in matchesxthis season, and Colonel de Lisle’s

position ast0. 2 added to the attack a vigour which had been previously wanting. A detailed account of the play will be found in this number. In the Subalterns’ Tournament at Amballa we were drawn against the second team of the 12th Lancers, and defeated them by sigoals to love, only, however, to be beaten by 9-1 the 1st team of the same Regiment in the second round. This team eventually won the Tournament. Our turf successesfat Meerut include a winning mount to Captain Tomkinson on the

The hounds up

to date have been out four or ﬁve times, and have killed eleven ‘jack. ’ The horn has been carried by Captain Sandbach, assisted by Messrs. Tidswell, Atkinson and Rube as whippers in, while Pte. Holmes has performed the duties of kennel huntsman. During the last fortnight we have enjoyed probably the best sport of the season. On two occasions, near Malhauri station, and on another at Ahmanmau, hounds ran quite fast, and the small band of followers in attendance were thoroughly pleased with their sport, This being our last season in Lucknow, we fe:-.r that the Regimental pack may be temporarily broken up, although it may be found possible to re-commence operations at Muttl‘a. Lord and Lady Charles Fitzmaurice have been recently spending a few days

at Flag-

staff House after their visit to Debra Dun. They sail for home on the 16th of this month and intend breaking their journey at Venice. Muttra has been new deﬁnitely ﬁxed upon as our next station, where we shall succeed the 16th Hussars who are going to South Africa. Although some of the more social

spirits of the Regiment may be disappoint ed at leaving the fashionable gatherings in Lucknow, and althoiigh we shall atMuttra find ourselves unassisted by other regiments in our sports, yet there are compensations which in the eyes ofmany will be more than sufficient. The shooting is good, the pig-sticking is the best in India, and our dependence upon home talent for sport and amusement should bring forth genius which has perhaps up to now lain fallow for want of opportunity. An account will be found below dealing with the Regimental and Squadron Assaults-atArms, and with the Murray Football Cup. The interest shown in thess events was exceedingly encouraging. We must congratulate Corporal Vanson on winning the de Lisle Sword for the second time, especially as on this occasion the standard of skill was of a very high order. The victory of the Regi~ mental team in the Murray Cup proves that the Regiment is again showing more keenness for this form of sport, and we hope that in the future many similar trophies may fall into our hands. This is the first occasion on which this tournament has been won bya

local team.

We congratulate the team upon

their victory, and also upon the sportsman-

like spirit which they showed throughout their matches.

Perhaps the smartest body of police in the world, the members of which, with the aid seemingly of merely a pair of white gloves and a few expressive semaphore movements, control the heavy streams of trafﬁc, and otherwise administer law and order in a. manner, especially through foreign eyes, little short of miraculous, is the City Police

of London. It is perhaps not generally known that quite a large number ofex-Royals belong to this corps. For years back the Regiment has been largely represented, and the names of Hunter, Bentley, Winham and many another st ilwart “ Bobby ” occur to us in this regard.

THE

The latest recruit is Corporal Reed, who left India. and the Regimentlast year, and now writes to tell us of his installation as a

guardian of the peace.

He refers to several

old Royals in the City Police, and mentions in particular the hefty, hot-blooded Yorkshireman, Booth, better known by the nickname

of “Tiddley,” who has just been promoted Police Sergeant. Reed mentions also Montforte, late of “C” Squadron, whois doing well in the Corps of Cominissionaires. We are always glad to hear of old friends.

Congratulations to Captain Hodgson on his promotion which appeared in a recent Gazette. Captain Hodgson is at present on leave in England, where he has enjoyed a ﬁne winter’s hunting. In a letter to us he makes mention of Tucker, late “ C ” Squadron, who is with him as groom, and of Hammett, our late picturesque dragman, who now rides second

horse to Captain Godman, in the same country. He has met also Corporal Smith, late of “ C,” who is in the G. P. O , and “looks very prosperous. ” Captain Hodgson laments the fact that he and “my man Tucker,” as the latter was known in the Regiment, are putting on a lot of weight. This can easily be counteracted. Return to head-quarters, contriving to reach here about the end of May ' We have also to congratulate Mr. Turner,

whose promotion to Lieutenant, rendered possible by Captain Hodgson’s step. has just been announced. Captain Lambert and Mr. Atkinson, shoot ing a few days ago in the Kheri district, secured a substantial bag made up of panther, cheetal and nilgai.

Captain

Sandbach,

Mr. Jump and

EAGLE THE Class presided

held by Mrs. Burch at her bungalow on 11th instant, and was a most pleasant gathering. The proceeds of the sale will go towa rds the purchase of materials for the making of outﬁts for women and children of the Regiment returning to England. The making is done by the sewing class which, including all the married women of the Regiment, meet s weekly for the purpose. The following letter, which need s no com-

ment, has just been received :— “My dear Comradeﬁ I am in recei pt of the photograph of the members of the Sergeants’ Mess, and request you will be kind enough to thank them all for it, and for remembering an old Royal who served for thirty years in the grand old regiment and passed through all the grades from Private to Lieutenant and Adjutant. I am commenci ng my 85th year, and old age is depriving me of my faculties. I am feeble, and deaf, and can but just see to write, but the love for my

dear old Regiment is as warm

ever.

Please give mylove to all the non-corns. wish you all every happiness.

Your late Adjutant,

News hasjust reached us indirectly of a grave misfortune which has befallen an old and well known ex—mem ber of the Regiment. Most Royals of the past twentyﬁve years will recall George Chaplin—701' Chapman, as he was known. He spent most of his service as an ofﬁcer’s first servant, among his masters

being Lieutenant Webb, the late Captain

Mr.

McMahon, Major Makins, and lastly, the pre«

sent Brigadier-General, Hon. J. E. Lindley.

ed for 14 brace of duck.

left South Africa as an invalid early in the

With this latter ofﬁcer, then a Major, Chaplin late war,

and

completing his

time agohe suffered a paralytic stroke and is at presenta helpless cripple without hope of recovery. His wife, who, too, will be well remembered, is doing her little best to support them both, and it is with the hope of the case appealing to those Who knew the Chaplins that we bring it to our readers’ notice. Their address is: Holly Bank, Jevelton, Norwich.

is a son of Major-General B. S. Gough, C. B, C.M.G., Limit-Governor, and Ofﬁcer Com; manding Troops in Jersey. and was lately aide-de-camp to his father. He came out on the H. T. “Plassey” bringing a draft numbering 67, which included S. S. M. Elliott returning from English sick leave. The men are a lively looking lot, and should develope into smart dragoons.

We learn with deep regret that the death has occurred at Teddington of Mr. Wilson Cook Millin, who served in the Crimean campaign with the Regiment taking part in the battles of Balaclava and Inkerman. De-

Every Royal, both past and present, will, we feel sure, enjoy reading the article kindly contributed by Colonel Tomkinson, and included in this number. We know by experi~ ence that our late commanding ofﬁcer wields a pleasing pen, and the present subject is, further, one of which, as Royals, we can never tire, namely, the doings of the men who in past years upheld the “honour and

ceased, who was 77, enlisted

service

in the Royals

at the age of 17, and on leaving the army he received an appointment at Hyde Park, being afterwards transferred to Hampton Court Palace, where for many years he was gate= keeper at the Lion Gates. He kepta refreshment stall just inside the gates, which was

done away with some

years ago, and his

striking figure, for he stood over 6ft, was a

familiar sight to the thousands of visitors to the palace. Possessing a good tenor voice, his services were much in request at local

concerts.

JOHN LEE, Hony. Major.”

Edwardes working thejheels in the neighbourhood of Madoganjon the Qist instant, accounts

A Jumble Sale for the married people of the Regiment, in connection with the Sewing

EAGLE

over by Mrs. de Lisle, was

He was buried with full military

honours. it will be recalled that his name ﬁgured in the list of those present at the last Old Comrades’ Dinner. Mr. Finn tells us that on the occasion the gallant old fellow seemed very shaky.

glory ” of the Regiment of which we are, or ought to be, proud members. The spirit of emulation in this respect has awakened in the breast of yet another dear old Royal, as the amusing anecdote which will be found herein under the signature of Colonel O’Shaughnessy (“Shocker” of the old days) will go to prove. The hero of the adventure, Captain McLaren, afterwards commanded the Regiment, being succeeded in Hounslow by Colonel Burn Murdoch,

HISTORICAL RECORD Of the First or the Royal Regiment of Dragoons, contain-

ing an account of its formation in the reign of

Another old Royal the:news of whose death has just reached us was Mr. Clinton who took his discharge some years ago as Troop Sergeant-Major, but remained with the Regiment for some time afterwards as Canteen Steward. His death occurred in December last. ‘

King Charles the Second, and of its subsequent services to the present time.

By General C. P. de Ainslie.

(Continued) On the 7th of June the advance-guard of Marshal Soult entered Llerena, and, on the night of the 9th, Sir Rowland Hill moved his infantry from Almendralejo to Usagre. At four o’clock on the morning 0fthe1lth, Slade received orders to advance with his

for

We welcome. a new comer to the Royals in

pension at home, left to take up the post of

the person of Mr. W. H. Gough who joined

brigade, and to bivouac in a wood between

coacliman to a gentleman in Norwich.

us last month from the Jersey Militia.

the two small rivers that crossed the road

Some

THE EAGLEE T H E

between Hinosa and Lleria, where he arrive d

accordingly about‘lo A.M., unbridled, and began to cook, when in about an hour and a halfapatrol came rapidly in and reported

that the Frenchcavalry had entered Lleria, and were advancing, which proved to beGene‘ ral l’Allemann, with the 17th and 27th Draigoons. On coming in sight of the British brigade already formed up, and ignorant of what might be in the wood in their rear. l’Allemann instantly went about and retreated pretty sharply, followed at a center by Slade through Lanneia and Gourdas towards Maguilla, but not before the Royals in a petty affair of skirmishers had already lost a sergeant and several men. Slade, neglecting .sonie'more favourable opportunities, at length made a determined charge with three squad .rons of the Royals, supported by the 8rd Dragoon Guards, than which could be no more successful, sabring many of the enemy and taking prisoner one General l’Allemann's aide-de-camp, when suddenly there arose a cry of "'look to the right!” “look to the

right I ” where, indeed, there appeared a squadron which the French General had kept in reserve, but merely for the purpose of covering the retreat of his brigade; for be it

observed, that the French were rapidly making off to the rear, while the British, seized with accountable panic, had also turned

about, so that for some minutes the extraordinary sight presented itself of two parties -mutuaily running away from each other, At this moment, Captain Hutton of the Royals

was able to collect his regiments, and then retired to the wood behind Lleria, whence he addressed his report to Lieutenant ~General Sir R, Hill of this most disastrous day, in which he says:— “ Nothing could exceed the galla ntry displayed by the oilicers and men on this occasion. Sir Granby Calcraft and Lieut enantColonel Clifton particularly disti nguished themselves, as well as all the ofﬁce rs present. “ I beg particularly to report the conduct 0f, Brigade-Major Radcliffe, of the Royal Dragoons, to whom I feel particularly indebted for his assistance on this occasion.” The casualties of the Royal Dragoons in this deplorable affair were one sergeant, eleven men, sixliorses killed ; nineteen men, eight horses wounded; and Lieutenant Windsor,

who was badly wounded, and four serge ants and thirty-nine men taken prisoners. The

brigade killed

generally sustained a loss of 140

and

taken

prisoners ;

two

ofﬁcers

taken,and more than two hundred horse s killed or died of excessive fatigue. The Earl of Wellington, as may be suppo sed, was very far from

being satisﬁed with

the results of the 11th of June, as will appe ar from the following extract from a letter of his lordship to Lieutenant-General Sir Rowland Hill, K.C.B. :— “ SALAMANCA, 180; June, 18/2. “ My DF. \R HILL,

“ The Royals and the 3rd Dragoon Guards were the best regiments in the Cavalry in

who commanded a' reserve squadron, made

this country, and it annoys me particularly that the misfortune should have occurred to

amost gallant charge‘ubut in vain; he was totally unsupported, and the whole brigade

them ; I do not wonder at the French boast -

in the greatest disorder, utterly regardless

ing of it. struck.

It is the greatest blow they have

Bart , had an affair with a French Squadron at Maguilla, of whom they killed many, and captured the officer commanding, a sergeant, and twenty men, with their horses. The enemy occupying Maguilla and advancing, Sir Rowland Hill retired, and on the 21.81; of June established a bivouac in the forest of Albuhera, where for three weeks the troops experienced much distreSs from the extreme heat, the wantof water, and the tainted at—

mosphere, which caused agreat deal of sickness.‘ Here the brigade was joined by the 4th RI. Dragoon Guards under Colonel Sher-

lock. 7 Early in June the French retired, when Sir Rowland Hill i‘e‘occupied his positions .at Alinendralejo and Villafranca, where news came 0f the victory of Salamanca on the 22nd of the month. The brigade now moved to Fuente del Maestre. , On the 17th of. August, this year, appea red a, warrant by which the cocked hat and jacked boots so long worn by the heavy cavalry were supersessed by a helmet and grey cloth overalls. The Earl of Wellington had entered Mud-

rid on the 12th of August, and Sir Rowland Hill making a corresponding move in advance, the Royal Dragoons marched on the 27th of the month, and on the 6th of Septemberreached Villanueva, leaving which place on the 18th, and crossing the Tagus by the pontoon bridge at Almarez 011 the 19th, they arrive d on

the 28th at Talavera de la Reina, where at Temdeca, in Newcastle and

in the

neigh-

bourhood of Madrid the regiment remained nearly two months, and encamped for about

three days in the environs of the capital

graceful ﬂight until victors and fugitives,

The 12th and 13th of June the brigade remained at Hinosa, whence, on the 14th, a

itself. ‘ The siege of Burgos having commenced, Hill took up a position on the Tagus, the Royals marching by the Royal Palace of

equally overcome and exhausted by the over.

detachment of 28 men, with an equal number

Aranjuez to Morata.

powering heatand the clouds of thick dust, came to a standstill at Valencio, about eight dmiles from Maguilla, where at length Slade

of the 3rd Dragoon Guards, under the command of Lieutenant Strenowitz, aide-de-camp

concentratinga very superior force, compel-led the raising of the siege, and Wellington retiring, Hill made a corresponding move~

70f the exertions and appeals of their general

and regimental officers, continued their dis-

WELLINGTON, ”

to Lieutenant-General, Sir William Erskine,

The enemy, however,

EAGLE.

merit; when the Royals commenced their retreat on the 27th of October by Madrid and the Pass of» the Guadarama mountain‘s, arriving on the 12th of November at Sala. manca, on the-18th at Arguila; and having on the 17th had an affair in which four men and one horse were wounded, they Went-i nto quarters on 28th in: the miserable village

of Zelreira, sixteen

miles from Alcanta‘ra,’

thehead-quartcrs of Slade’s brigade. Wretched as was the Village of Zelreira, the forage proved to be so good and abundant as speedily to produce a most beneﬁcial change

in the condition of the horses, which had suffered so terribly in this disastroas‘f'retreat of thirty days from Burgos, throug hout which thehardships of the allied army were intense, andindeed seen in general to have recalled the celebrated retreat- to Corunn a. in 180.9, the

scenes related

disorder

and

suffering being almost equally painful . During the whole of the past year it will have been observed that the services of the Royal Regiment of Dragoons Were chieﬂy conﬁned to duties of outposts and piquets, which, all: though in themselves of primary importance and calling for constant activity and intelligence, are peculiarly harassing, and not of a nature to gratify ambition of distinction. A few days previous to the ist of Januar y, 1818, the regiment moved into Alcaut ara, between which city and their late quarte rs at Zrelreira runs the small stream of' the Ellas,‘ dividing Portugal from Spain, and». as it turned out, in crossing bya narrow bridge the

Royal Dragoons had left Portugal for ever. In Alcantara, a large, well-built city: with?

good, well paved streets, and situated upon the almost perpendicular rocks overhanging

the Tagus, the Royals remained all January, February, and part of the month of March; enjoying their excellent quarters. While here took place at Broses the Lieutenant-General ”

Sir William Erskine,

who commanded‘the

cavalry __ of this division of the 'army‘ﬁthe‘

tragical death of that ofﬁcer, who, takinga

THE.EAGLE

fever, threw himself out of his bed-room window in a lit of delirium, and inju red himself so terribly as to die three days afte rwards, in the 47th year of his age. His fune ral,arrang-

ed by his aide-de camp, Captain Eckersle y, of the Royal Dragoons, was attended by Major‘ General Slade" brigade, and a hand some tab-

let with a Latin inscription was erected to his memory. ‘ (To be continued.) SOUTH AFRICAN LETTERS. INGAGANE, NATAL, 28th March, 1901.

DEAR M,—

We arrived at Newcastle two days ago after seven weeks” rough-and-tumble in the south. east Transvaal, and have been re-ﬁtted with new clothes, boots, etc, which we were sadly

in need of.

Really we looked more like tramps

than dashing dragoons. When we marc hed in, my boots were both deﬁcient of soles, pants

well ventilated, and other things to match. The regiment is at Newcastle, I being on

detachment here with twelve troopers to ﬁnd patrols for the garrison which consists of a

hundred men of the Imperial Light Infantry. After seven weeks, scrambling about rocky kopjes, a little rest is very acceptable. I have a tent to myself and a. bed, composed of a. sheet of zinc rooﬁng on two boxes.

There

is a Field Force Canteen here, a miniature

“ Whiteley’s ” 0f the veldt, where one can‘ purchase little luxuries ranging from shaving soap to apple-puddings in tins.

I forget exactly where I left off my last letter, so must make achance-shot.

THE

Outpost duty was another form of amusement we had agood deal of. One day I had a post of six men on a small kopje, eight miles from camp. During the day we were the interested spectators of a skirmish between apatrol of the 5th Dragoon Guards and a party of Boers who seemed to be covering the passage of some cattle visible in the distant hills. There was a farm one mile in front of This post occupied by a solitary old hen I tried to catch her on several

posite appearing to be the cliffs of a coast

occasions, but never succeeded.

line juttinginto the water, and other hills with their crests above the bank of vapour resembled islands;this scene would last until sun-

rise, then sometimes it would become tinged with rose colour, ﬁnally rising in wreaths and

billows until it enveloped

the

tops of the

mountains, sometimes to lift occasional ly to remain as a fog. In clear weather there was a splendid View from the top of the berg, one looked down a sheer descent of many hun‘ dreds of feet, masses of rock being piled up and balanced in a truly marvellous mann er. The disrant view calls to memory the follo wing lines :— Higber and higher she climbed, and far below her stretched Elli beyond hill with lergthening slopes and glades And a world opening still,

which describes the scene exactly.

On Feb

About this time we had a good deal of pat-

ruary 25th my troop ofﬁcer, seven troopers

rolling, visiting farms occupied by women and children, to search for arms and ammuni~ tion, and ascertain if the men were prisoners of war, or on commando. At noon we would otfsaddle by someclear running spring, kill

(Royals), ﬁve colonials, a guide and myself, rode out to Zwartberg, aboutforty miles there

and back.

Boers had been reported there.

At a small farm near the foot of the mountain we found three wagons outspanned, containing tents, clothing, and cooking utensils, evidently recently used, whilst in the house were

EAGLE

two Dutchwom en and some children. Bye the bye, the five colonials referred to above , went on as advance-guard and evide ntly took a wrong direction, as we saw no more of them~ We saw nothing of the Boers and had a very rough ride home. Night found us still miles from camp, and we had to pick up a Kafir rom a kraal for a guide, for no other than a native could have found a way over the spruits, kloofs, kopjes and bogs; we had to cross in the blackness of a cloudy night. On the 26th we shifted bivouacs to Elandsberg Nek. Early in the mornings for two or three days We had very fine cloud effects, below in the valleys lay the cloud s like a mass of cottonrwool, the long mountain range op-

a sheep (when we were fortunate enough to, ﬁnd one) and prepare dinner, composed of

the aforesaid mutton, and biscuit or damper

(ilour-and-water cakes baked in hot ashes).

At this time the peaches were both ripe and plentiful and provided dessert. Then after a smoke, and perhaps forty winks, we would

saddle up and make tracks for camp.

A fortnight

later we had a trooper killed and another wounded at this post. Some hundreds of Boer families in wagons and thousands of head of captured cattle passed through our hands en route to Utrecht. Early in the month my troop escorted General Hildyard to Pivaano river, where we were relieved by an escort of the 5th Dragoon There were many Boer families Guards. outspanned along the road, and the youngsters were evidently enjoying it in spite of the rain. This was on the 4th March, and it rained steadily without a pause. until mid-day, March 7th, and we turned out for patrol and outpost, literally wet to the skin and came back wetter (if that was possible). We took off our shirts, wrung them out, and put them on again. On the 7th I went to Chaka’s Spruit, where there was a ﬁght in progress. with remounts for General French, offsaddling at noon in an orange grove, where the fruit was ripe. The ﬂavour of oranges plucked from the tree is distinctly superior to those picked green for

export. The rain ceased for two hours, but commenced again as we started trekking homewards. The travelling was very bad, the countryside being practically a swamp, ,and I. had to leave several men behind at intervals of miles apart, their horses being

done up.

37 The spruits were so high that we

had to swim our horses, starting some distance above the drifts, to allow for the current. We rather enjoyed this, as the water was warmer than the rain, and we couldn’t possibly get any wetter than we were. On the evening of the 8th information came in to the effect that a large commando of Boers were in the neighbourhood, and a Boer scout, who was captured, said an attack on our bivouacs would be made that night. We moved the horses after dark and took up positions round the camp, the men slept as they lay in the ranks in the pouring rain (it rained fast from the 7th after two hours’ break until the 10th), but nothing happened. When day dawned there was athick mist. We couldn’t see our sentries a few paces in front. Two days later we marched to One Tree Hill and thence to Pivaano Poort. It rained all day, and no baggage arrived, it having stuck fast at a drift en route. It was dark before we reached our destination. We ﬁnished the last two miles dismounted, over our shoe—tops in mud and water. We found a detachment of the 5th Dragoon Guards at Pivaano Poort on half rations, truly

a lively state of affairs. We had nothing to eat that day, were cold and wet through, and miserable.

We could do nothing in the

pitch darkness, except take off the saddles and sit on them till daybreak. The 5th Dragoon Guards were little better

off, and, though on half rations, pressed what they had on our men.

The sergeants

did

what they could for me. They made some tea and forced some cold meat and biscuit out of their slender store on me, in spite of protests. I swallowed about a quart of hot tea withouta murmur.

(If any one would like

to thoroughly appreciate hot tea, let them lay out in the rain all night just to get nicely damp, then get up and swim a river, fully dressed of course, ride all day in the rain without food or drink, walk the last few miles in mud and darkness, by that time I’ll wager

THE

EAGLE THE

they will be able to fully valuea pot of tea.)

The regiment and transport arrived next day and the enemy became active, driving in the outposts of the Hampshire Yeomanry who were eight or nine miles nearer Utrecht. We went out (ﬁfty men and a maxim) and came into contact Willi a superior force of Boers who, however, eventually retired. We had one trooper killed and two wounded. (March

14th—Pte

Higgins killed, Ptes. Chesterton

and Rieder wounded) After that things got brighter, ﬁne weather set in, and it seemed quite strange to feel dry again. The roads dried up and became passable, convoys arrived with provisions and we were put on full rations.

hovered about.

The Boers still

We had another skirmish a

hoping by a few preliminary matches to put in the necessary polish to make both ponies and players as tit as possible for this annual competition. This year nine teams played. These included the seven British Cavalry regiments

quartered in Northern

and Central India,

the Rifle Brigade, and a combined team of the 38th and 39th Central India Horse. As the 39th Regiment of the Central India Horse had recently won the Indian Cavalry Polo Tournament at Um balla, there was considerable curi-

osity felt as to the strength of this combined team. The tournament opened on Saturday, February 27th, with a match between the 15th

Hussars

and

the

Inniskilling

Dragoons.

day or two later with no loss, except one horse shot. When all the convoy, Wagons: looted stock and Boer families had passed,

This latter Regiment has recently arrived in India from Egypt bringing with them ninety ponies, to which several first class Indian

we commenced our return march,

ponies have since beenadded. Though playing good polo, the Inniskilling Dragoons found their game too slow for India, and were easily

at Newcastle on the 26th instant. ment is in splendid health and none the worse for the drenching commons we have experienced two months.

arriving

The regL seemingly and short for nearly

Yours, OL-OL.

THE INTER-REGIMENTAL POLO WEEK. In India, it has long been the custom for Stations to entertain their friends once or twicea year during a week of gaiety and amusement. Every bungalow, on these occasions, presents a gay appearance with lawns covered with tents for the accommodation 0f guests for whom house-room is not avail-

able. and amusement of some kind is provided for the visitors, day and night. Of all the weeks during the winter season, the most important, and to Cavalry oﬂicers

the most enjoyable, is the Meerut Week, Of which the chief attraction is the Inter—Regimental Polo Tournament.

Regimental teams begin to collect several days before the tournament commences,

defeated by the 15th Hussars who were playing in better form than ever. An unfortunate accident to Captain Barrett, who broke a small bone in his hand, incapacitated this player from further-part in the tournament, and the loss of their best player resulted in the defeat of the 15th Hussars in the next

round but one, when they met the King’s Dragoon Guards. On Sunday afternoon all the ponies playing in the tournament were paraded near the 17th Lancers Mess, each team walking round its own ring. Spectators freely criticised the looks and condition of the ponies of every team, and it was gratifying to hear the gener< al complimentary remarks on the ponies of our own team. These compared very favouraby in look with those of any team, and as

regards condition and bright coats were undoubtedly the best of all. At this parade everyone comes who can, for there friendships and

acquaintances are renewed,

The performance was certainly most cleverly

the King’s Dragoon Guards against the 15th Hussars, the latter somewhat disorganised by the change in their team owing to Captain Barrett’s accident. Later in the afternoon, the 10th Hussars easily defeated the 17th Lancers. Thursday opened with an amusing polo match in the morning. It was advertised as Decrepit Colonels vs. Silly Subalterns, and proved to be team of four Colonels against the 12th Lancers Subalterns’ Team. The former team consisted of Colonels de Lisle, Nickalls, Watson and Cotgrave, and the match ended in a draw, the score being 6 goals all. The Finals of the Inter-Regimental was played on Friday between the King's Dragoon Guards and the 10th Hussars. Though the 10th Hussars were expected to win, their hollow victory came as a surprise. The game was not very interesting on account of its one-sidedness. All through, the King's Dragoon Guards were on the defensive, and only once were they able to score, while the 10th were adding goal after goal. Friday ended in a polo dinner of eight-y, and another small dance given by Colonel Nickalls. ’I‘he Meerut Horse Show, as usual, brought the week to aclose. This is quite the best show in India. as regards polo ponies. The teams competing in the Inter-Regi— mental buy up most of the best ponies in India, and in the Show Ring the competitor is very keen. So ended a most enjoyable week well organised by our hosts, the oﬁcers of the 17th Lancers. There can be no doubt that institutions of this kind assistlargely towards making soldiering in India popular. and beneﬁt our Cavalry Regiments by offering

and carefully got up, and afforded us the

opportunities for ofﬁcers of various corps be-

greatest amusement. Tuesday provided varied

Coming acquainted with each other.

all.

Several of the players, unaware of the

score, pulled up when the “Halt ” was soundcd, but one of the 17th Lancers who was then on the ball took it along and scored the linal goal. There can be little doubt that the mistake of the timekeeper in sounding the “ Halt” which denotes the end of the match, instead of one “ G ” for the end of the period, gave the victory to the 17th Lancers. It was agrand game to watch, and was played faster than any other game in the tournament. From start to ﬁnish, the pace was as fast as ponies could gallop, and all our team were playing above their usual form. The Colonel as No. 2 made the pace, and everyone else had to

conform. Old players in the stand were heard to remark that this style of polo was like the polo every one played, when 13-3 was the height of ponies, but it does not seem evi‘ dent how 18—8 ponies can go faster than 14-1

ponies, of which many are 14-3. The same afternoon, the 10th and 15th Hussars won their games easily from the Central India Horse and the Riﬂe Brigade. The same evening all Meerut attended the 17th Lancers’ excellent musical farce, “ Robinson Crusoe.” The local hits were bright and clever, though somewhat too personal to the audience on several occasions.

amusement in

racing anda small dance given by Colonel Nickalls, and Wednesday was ﬁlled up with

and even

among the ponies old friends are gladly seen again.

Monday, March 1st, produced four games, one in the morning and threein the afternoon. The King’s Dragoon Guards beat the 17th Lancers in the morning, and the afternoon opened with a match between the Royal Dragoons and the 17th Lancers. This proved to be the game of the tournament, and was fought out, goal by goal, till the “ Halt” was sounded when the board showed three goals

EAGLE

polo and boxing.

The polo opened with a narrow victory for

The accounts of the de Lisle Sword Competition and the Divisional Assault-at-Arms will~ be given in our next number. They have been omitted from the present number owing

to want cf space—[Enrica]

THE

EAGLE THE'EAGLE

SPORTING REMINISCENCES. No. 1. BY COL. H. TOMKINSON.

To the Monthly Journal ofa Regiment so

devoted to all descriptions of Sport as my old corps has been in the past—a devotion, as I am well aware, fully shared by those of the present generation—a contribution from one of its former members dealing with the various ways in which the ofﬁcers of the

Royals have taken a prominent position in the sporting world, may not be thought out of place. My article is written far from any access to books of reference and, with the exception of a few items of information as to dates, etc., for which I have applied to two of those who ﬁgured in the events of which, possibly, a subsequent paper may treat, the retrospect of the forty years or more which this or any later article will cover must be dependent for its facts on what is, fortunately, a fairly reten< tive memory on the part of the writer for such matters. I have endeavoured to recall some of the doings of the predecessors of

the present Royals as I remember them, in the hope that to the latter as well as to the readers of The Eagle at large the narra. tive may not be without interest, and should

any of the old members of the Regiment be in a position to supplement my sketch with further details, I

feel sure that the Editor

will welcome their information if supplied to him for it. In the library of the public school, at which a portion of my education was completed, one sporting book only was to be found, “Nim~ rod’s Classic ” of “The Chase, The Road, and The Turf.” It is to be feared, that this

volume possessed a greater fascination for me than any other on the well-stocked shelves,

and I read and re-read the book until I nearly knew the contents by heart! The sequence observed in the work in question shall obtain here, and it is to the hunting aspect of my

subject that I ﬁrst turn, c‘onseqhently, in this article.

At the Regimental Dinner of the Royals a toast invariably given and honoured, is that

of Fox Hunting.

In response I have seen on

one occasion no less than ﬁve masters and exmasters of hounds present to acknowledge it, and at no annual gathering in my recollection have they been without one or more representatives to respond to the toast. Quite a remarkable succession of M. F. H‘s, indeed , has been supplied by the Regiment, con~ tinously, from the early seventies to the present time, and it may safely be asserted that in no other corps in the service have so many been “developed ” as in the Royals . The doyen of the number may be said to be Sir Richard Glyn, a veteran who served with distinction in the Crimea and is, happily, still hale and vigorous. Succeeding the late Mr. Digby as Master of that sporting country, the Blackmore Vale, about 1865, to the best of my recollection, he presided over the hunting there for many years, resigning ofﬁce in 1884

in favour of Mr. Merthyr Guest to the regret of every one who knew him. One of Sir Richard’s most devoted admirers. who hunted with his hounds'to the last, was General Wardlaw, the distinguished Commander of the Royal Dragoons from the time of the battle of Balaclava, and for many years subsequently. It is quite in the ﬁtness of things, and tends to show the “heredity ” in the Royals that one of the younger generation,

Colonel Percy Browne, should be at the present time the worthy and most popular suc-

cessor in ofﬁce to Sir Richard, in the country where so many of his own, contemporaries are now living. Prior to the South African war, where Colonel Browne did such good service in command of the Dorsetshire Yeomanry, he was for some time master of the South and West Wilts hounds, where his reign was as ﬂourishing as his present one in the

neighbouring country. An old Royal whose name in Cheshire may

be said to be a “household word,” Captain Park-Yates, for nineteen seasons from 1887 carried the horn of office in North Cheshire, this long term of mastership being only ended by his lamented and tragical death, from a fall in the hunting field, at the end of the winter of 1896. His general reign will long be remembered in the country he loved so well and where he was—it is no mere form of speech to say-~~simply idolized by every one, high and low. Turning to Ireland we find a

former member of the Regiment, Captain HamiltonStubber, in the seventies was mas ter of the Queens County Hounds, and in 1883, on his leaving the service, t'aptain Towers‘ Clark assumed command of the West Meath County. There he showed excellent sport for several seasons, carrying the horn himself. He imported a much faster class of bounds to the Westmeath kennels than had been in vogue previously, by taking the draft from the South Cheshire pack—then famous under Mr. Reginald Corbet‘s mastership,—several times during his term of office. In later days, and when the Regiment was quartered in Dublin between 1898 and 1896, Mr. Harrison, who with Colonel Browne, distinguished himself in the war- with the Yeomanry, hunted the East Galway hounds, and I believe he is now master of some other Irish Pack. He wasagood -maii over country when in the Regiment—and his tenure of office in Galway was marked by many successful seasons. In Scotland Captain Jack Middleton, on his retirement from the Regiment at the conclusion of five years’ appointment as Adjutant of the Fife Light Horse, became master of the Fife Rounds and held that post until shortly before his premature and much regretted death. Of Masters of Harriers the names of other former Royals recur to me in connection with the position. Sir Humphry de Trafford, a

“very old Royal,” established a beautiful pack in Lancashire and Cheshire and hunted them frdm his residence at Traiford Park near Manchester, Sir William Williams,

4‘1

who began in the Regiment and went afterwards to the Blues, kept barriers in Wales also for some time. This epitome of “ Masters” and their doings would be however. incomplete indeed, were it to conclude without a special mention of that splendid sportsman and genial giant who for some years served in the Regiment—“ Dicky” Ker. In a somewhat lengthy experience I should be inclined to adjudge him the best very heavy weight I ever knew, one combining “ hands," horse-

manship and “go ” in a way quite remarkable in so big a man. Succeeding to his property in the north of Ireland in 1877, he left

the Regiment then and settled at his place, Montalto, in Co. Down. There he at once got together a pack of barriers, but after two years exchanged these for stag bounds and hunted them for many years. This pack is now established on a permanent basis as the County Down stag hounds and shows excellent sport in the big country near Belfast When master of them, Mr. Ker, in spite of his 17 stone, could be beaten by none of his ﬁeld, and

the way in which he rode through and got to the end of the many long runs in his mastership was nothing less than marvellous. Of “Dicky” and his doings in the hunting field the good stories are many, and with two episodes I may perhaps fitly close this article. Of the first he himself told in the course of a most amus ing speech at one of the Regimental Dinners in returning thanks as a Master of Hounds. “The first day I hunted, ” he said, “after I had turned my barriers into stag hounds and imported some very large red deer for these latter, we had a check in aroad by the cottage of an old woman who was outside it in a state of great excitement.” “ Did you see him, ma’arn ? ” I said, “I did sor,” was the reply, “and he was the greatest HA RE ye ever saw!" With another comical occurrence which nearly, however, ended in tragedy, I had myself some sortof connection. We were the posessors at Ballinrobe, in 1880, of some unusually large poodles, which we had bred, and one of the

THE

EAGLE THE

ﬁnest of these—a magniﬁcent white dog— “ Pharaoh ” by name, was sent by us as a present to Mrs. Ker, the wife of the master,

beautifully clipped and “decorated” in the customary poodle fashion. Soon after his arrival in the north, “Pharaoh ” accompanied his mistress to a meet of the stag hounds and, rdismounting from the carriage in which he had been conveyed there, proceeded to walk about at the rendezvous in all the pride and

glory which distinguished him. Suddenly the somewhat wild and uncontrollable pack, as they were in these early days, caught sight of this very unusual “quarry” and broke away in pursuit of the dog, who took refuge in an immediate and hurried ﬂight along the high road. His turn of speed fortunately enabled him to keep ahead for a considerable time, but his bolt was nearly shot, and he was almost exhausted and only just in front of the bounds, when in despair, he dashed into a cottage went to ground in the bed-room ofit, a man shutting the door after him as he passed

The

winners

receTve

addition

the following entries :— Cameronians, East Yorks, 2nd Worcesters, Shropshire Light Infantry, Middlesex Regiment, Riﬂe Brigade, 4th Worcestershire

Regiment, Leinster Regiment, King’s Dragoon Guards, Durham Light Infantry, Royal Irish Regiment, Lancashire Fusiliers, 17th Lancer», King‘s Own Regiment, Highland Light Infantry, Royal Dragoons, and Essex Regiment. As reported last month we drew a bye in the ﬁrst round, and in the second defeated the Essex Regiment by three goals to love.

The third round found us matched against the Leinster Regiment. This game “as played on the King’s own ground on the 1st

the King’s Own ground, before a crowd of military and civilian spectators. The game opened in our favour, but the players appeared over anxious, and a good deal of unnecessary kicking into the air resulted. The Highlanders were often dangerous, but made several mistakes in front of goal, while our men lost one or two opportunities. The second half was steadier and very fast, but in spite of the pressure which the Royals maintained no score came, and the whistle blue for “time." A further ten minutes’ play each way was ordered, and amid the enthusiastic cheers of their respective supporters, the teams again took the ﬁeld. A rapid start was made and the pace remained fast, when Jeffery receiving the ball in the opponents’ half, dribbled a few paces and, with a fast sailing shot, beat the

instant and resulted in a win for the Royals Highland custodian. by 2:1. The game, on the whole, was poor and

neither side appeared to be playing up to their form. The Leinsters were the first to

On the instant nearly

every Royal Dragoon standing around was hatless, and behaving like a wild man. The remainder of the replay was fast and

score, and shortly afterwards Moore equal-

good and in our favour, but no further score

pursuit of his defaulting pack, the excited owner of the cottage thus addressed him, “I have the LION under the bed, your Honour, In will I bring him out to them ? A few more hunting memoranda, with some details of steeplechasing in connection with the Regiment, may form the subject of a later paper on sport in The Eagle.

ised. No further score was made until the second half, when Hart centred nicely and gave Moore an opening, which the latter

promptly secured. This proved the winning

was made. Thus we came out winners by one goal to nil. The cup and medals were presented by Mrs. Sclater, whilst the Hon. Secretary, the

point.

Rev. Kirwan, congratulated the winning team,

The victory of the Regiment in the above, necessitate z a brief description of the tournament. It was instituted in 1896, and has been held annually since, with the exception of one year during the late war. It ranks as one of the premier tournaments in India. The trophy which w—s presented by Messrs.

Murray and Co., of Lucknow, is a huge silver loving cup of beautiful Delhi design, standing on a silver-bound plinth which bears the names of the various winning regiments.

silver

medals, whilst bronze medals go ti the run— ners up. This year’s tournament included

through it. When the master arrived, in angry

FOOTBALL. MURRAY CUP TOURNAMENT.

EAGLE

This victory brought us to the semi-ﬁnal round, and we met the Middlesex Regiment. The game was fast throughout and our team played up splendidly and tried shot after shot, theMiddlesex goal-keeper putting up a magniﬁcent defence. Ten minules from the start a. penalty was given against the Middlesex, from which Helliwell scored. Keeping up the pressure, our men forced a corner, and Hart placing with judgment, Moore headed into the net.

The second half was well in favour of the Royals, but nofurther point was added and the game ended in a win for us by 2—-0. Tne other ﬁnalists were, curiously enough,

also a Lucknow team, the Highland Light Infantry, and the ﬁnal game came off on

and incidentally told his hearers several interesting things about football and the way

to Holyhead, and on arriving at Chester. I put my head out of the window to see what was going on, when I saw a brother ofﬁcer, Captain McLaren, walking along the platform looking for a seat. No other person being in my carriage, I called out to him, and having got in with me, he threw his coat and rug down on the seat, and sat down in the corner opposite to me. Just as the train was starting another man got into the carriage and took the seat at the end on the same side as I was. Captain McLaren and I talked for a while about what we had been doing during our long leave, and then he said he would go

to sleep, as having been travelling all day he was very tired. He turned up the arms of the seat 011 his side, and before lying down, asked our fellow-passenger ifthe latter would mind the shade of the light being pulled down. Receiving a polite negative reply, McLaren screened thelight and then lay down at full length and pulled his rug over him. Shortly after, it being a very cold night, he pulled a coat up over his shoulders as well, and fell asleep. I sat looking out of the window and half dozing, when suddenly

I became aware of something moving, and I noticed the man who had got into our carriage leaning forward, and very quietly pass-

me of when he fell asleep in the train, reminds

ing his hand along the coat which was over McLaren’s shoulders. Needless to say by this time I was wide awake, and was just on the point of seizing him by the wrist, when McLaren sat up and said : “What are you doing ‘3 ”to which our friend replied : “' I am so sorry I awoke you, but the fact is, that is my coat you have got, and I thought I would be able to take it without disturbing you " 1 McLaren was, of course, full of apologies, and he having got his coat, which had slipped off the seat on to the floor, we all settled down again. I was very much relieved at not having to try conclusions with what we both thought

what betel another Royal Dragoon who slum~

for a moment was a professional pickpocket.

to play it. This is the ﬁrstoccasion on which the Cup, which came

originally from Lucknow, has

been won by a local team.

A SERIO-COMIC ADVENTURE. To THE EDITOR. DEAR SIR, Colonel Mesham ’s amusing story in your December number of what' happened to him

bered whilst travelling.

I was returning to

Ireland in 1881 from leave by the night mail

Yours truly,

W. F. G. O‘SHAUGHNESSY.

THE EAGLE THE

CORPORALS’ ANNUAL SHOOT. On the 4th instant, the Corporals of the Regiment held a very successful all-day shoot.

The day was ﬁne, except for the wind which began to blow rather hard toward the ﬁnish. Firing commenced at 8-80 A.M., and under

the excellent management of Corpl. McLellan and his com mittee everything went well. The competitors were divided into three classes, A, B, and 0, according to their qualiﬁcations at the last annual course of musketry. For each class there were four prizes :—

lst prize .. 2nd “ .. 3rd “ ..

.. .. ..

Rs. 20 “ 12 lst Spoon.

4th " .. . . 2nd “ Before the competition commenced, Pool Bull shooting took place for half~an~hour at each range, and some good shooting was witnessed ; the total number of Pool Bulls scored being 25. The competition was very keenly contested, and almost till the last shot was tired, the prize-winners could not be picked out.

entered a team of 6, the competitors to lie down at the 600 yards firing point, rifles unloaded, and on the whiscle sound to double to 500 yards firing point, and fire as man rounds as possible until the whistle blew. Time allowed, 1 minute: each hit to count one point One minute‘s rest, double to the 200 yards tiring point and repeat. Time allowed, 2 minutes. This was easily won by “ D ” Squadron with the creditable score of 99 hits. An excellent dinner was provided on the range at 2 P.M., and was very enjoyable.

Section. Jumping.——\Vinners, 2nd Troop, com. prising Sergt. Goddard, Sergt. All-

lst. Corpl. \Vhittingham 2nd. " Holnville 3rd. “ Stone 4th. “ S. 5. Arnold

Chin, Pte, Evans, and Pte. Collier. “C ” SQUADRON.

SQUADRON MOUNTED SPORTS. Prior to the Regimental Assault-at-Arms, each Squadron held their annual competition, when the following were adjudged winners of the various events :— “ A ” SQUADRON.

Heads and Posts-.—1st, Sergt. Rapkin; 2nd, Sergt. Thompson. Individual Tent-peggmg.——1st, Pte. 2nd, Sergt. Andrews.

Holmes ;

Indivi ual Jumping—1st, SSM. Cooke ; 2nd,

Corpl. Hurn. Sword v. Sword—1st, Sergt. Bean : 2nd, Pte. Taylor. Spiral Race—1st, Sergt. Bean; 23nd, SS. M. Cooke. Section Jumping—Winners, 4th Troop, com-

prising

An inter-squadron shoot was also arrang-

ed, the conditions being that each squadron

Section

S.S.M. Cooke,

CLASS B. . T16 Score. Score. Shots. 1st. Cpl. Hughes. 84 11 1 ist. Cpl. McDonal], Vanson, 1052nd. “ McLellan, S4 CLASS A.

2nd. 3rd. 4th.

“ “

Shackle, Spiccr,

79 75

3rd. 4th.

~“

Dyer, Dorling,

Cast,

and

Riﬂe Competition—Winners, 2nd Troop, comprising Corpl. Morris, Pie. Aitken, Pte. Pearson and Pte. McKay. “ I)" SQUADRON. Heads and Posts—1M, Sergt.

Timson; 2nd,

REGIMENTAL ASSAULT-AT-ARMS. This annual meeting was held on Thursday and Friday, February 18th and 19th, and proved to be more successful from every point of view than any of its forerunners. The preliminary heats were got through during the mornings of the two days, and on Friday afternoon a large number of people,

friends of the Officers and Sergeants, both op whom were “ at home ” for the occasion, as sembled on the maid-fin near the circus arena. to witness the ﬁnals. Throughout the afternoon the competition was keenly contested, and the skill exhibited of a very high order There was a conspicuous absence of the “ one man show" which has characterised the meetings of former years, and in several events the judges had the greatest difﬁculty in plac— ingr competitors in their order of merit. The jumping and pegging courses had been put in excellent condition by the Riding School slatf, and marquees were erected for

Corpl. Vanson.

Sergt.

Rapkin, Corpl. Burn, and Pte. Knight. Tent.peggilig.~lVlIlnel‘S, 2nd Troop, comprisingSergtMitchell, Sergt.

Pegg, Corpl.

Heads and Posts.—lst, Sergt. Sales; 2nd, Corpl. Workman, 3rd, Ptes. McKay and Hobbs, a tie. Individual Tent-pmgino—lst, Pte, Robson; 2nd, Corpl. Stone; 8rd, Corpl. Hoff. Spiral Race—ist, Corpl. Workman ; 2nd, Pte. Robson. Section Jumping ~Winners, 4th Troop, comprising Sergt. Coe, Corpl. Workman, Corpl Parrott, and Pte. Robson. Section Tentpcgomg.—Winners, 2nd Troop.

Pte.

Holmes. Riﬂe Competittom—Winners, Corpl. Bullen, Pte. Denning, Pte. Rose, and Pte. Gordon. “ B ” SQUADRON’. Heads and Posts—1st, Pte. Collier :2nd, Pte. Weeks. Individual J‘c;,[-p5ggi77g.—lst, Sergt. Newton;

Individual ’I‘enl-penging,——lst, Corpl. McLellan;

2nd, Sergt. Richmond. Individual Jumping.—15t, Corpl. Rivett ; 2nd,

S.Q.M.S. Lawrence.

Sutch. Section Jumping_~Winners, 8rd Troop, com. prisingCorpl. Pitts,Pte. Sample, Pte. Cole, and Pte. Scarfe. Section

Tenfpem]lnfﬁ—‘Ylnnel‘S,

1st

Troop,

comprising S.Q.i\'l.S. Lawrence, Sergt. Sutch, Corpl. Buckley, and

2ndJ Pte. Collier.

Sword v. Swmd—lst, Pte. Perkins ; 2nd, Sergt. Allchin. Spiral Race.—lst, Sergt. Goddard ; 2nd, Pte. Chase.

Pte. Myall. Riﬂe Competiiion.——Winners, 4th Troop.

Section Tempgggmg,—Winners, 3rd Troop, comprising Sergt. Newton, Sergt.

ed improvement on previous years’ perform-

Rickeard, Corpl. Bray, and Pte. Dye.

place, been run off in troops, so that practically every man in the Regiment competed, :making the events keen and good to watch.

There was noticeable in all the above a markances.

the guests, and perhaps every man in the Regiment turned out, and followed the events closely and enthusiastically. The band under Mr. Holt played a programme during the afternoon, as well as supplying the incidental

Sword v. Sword—1st, Corpl. Vanson; 2nd, Pte. Leslie. Spiral [lace—1st, Corpl. Vanson -, 3nd, Sergt.

Mystery attaches to the disappearance of a megaphone. A suggestion that it was cut up with the salad IS too absurd to entertain I The prize-Winners were as follows :—

EAGLE'

CLASS C.

Most of the event's had, in the ﬁrst

music for the Ride. The following were the winners :— Spiral Race—15h SSM. Cooke; 2nd, Sergt. Sales and Pte. Robson, a tie. Riﬂe Competition—1%, “A” Squadron {2nd, “ C" Squadron; 3rd, “ B” Squadron. The Section Commanders were good throughout, and the winners’ time (8 mts. 31 secs.) taken into consi~ deration with the almost perfect dressing was a smart performance. Section Tent-pegging.—1st, “ G ” Squadron ;

20d, “A" Squad ron;3rd, “D"Squadron. Very good pegging. “A” and “ D" obtained equal points and were ordered an extra run to decide 2nd and 3rd.

Section Jumping—15L, “ A" Squadron; 2nd, “ O" Squadron ; 3rd, “ B“ Squadron

THE

EAGLE

THE EAGLE Six teams competed in the ﬁnal and some excellent jumping was witness-

ed. .

Very little separated the three‘

winners.

Sword v. Sword.——lst,

S.S.M. Cooke; 2nd,

Sergt. Allchin ;3rd, Corp]. Vanson. Cooke defeated Allchin by a narrow margin after an extra bout. Headsand Posts.—lst, Corpl. Vanson; 2nd,

those who assisted in the clever and interesting exhibition. , i'?’*“":‘t:: Mrs. Makins kindly presented the prizes, and it was almost dark at the conclusion of this ceremony which broughta most enjoy-

able afternoon's sport to a close.

SERGEANTS’ MESS NOTES.

Sergt. Allchin ; 3rd, Sergt. Timson. An exceedingly good display, the competitors being only a point or two below the winners. Individual ’1‘enL-peggz'ny.—lst, Sergt. Newton; 2nd, Sergt. Sutch;3rd, Pte. Bray, This was very closely contested. Newton was only one point ahead of Sulch and Bray who had to run off again for 2nd and 3rd*prize. Following this came an exhibition of tentpegging inwhich Sergeants Sutch, Rapkin,

The chief eventof the past month is the annual “Relief of Ladysmith” Ball, which took place on Wednesday, 3rd instant. As in former years, the dancing and sitting-out ac. commodation was arranged on the two spacious tennis courts outside the Mess, while

Sales and Newton, and Corporals Pegg and Stone took part. With sword in teeth and

i'effect.

lance in hand these essayed to take a peg with each weapon in one run, and to the delight and surprise of every one present the majority did it! The pegs were some forty feet

apart, and after securing the ﬁrst with the lance, this arm was rapidly exchanged for

the sword and the second peg taken. smart performance indeed.

A very

supper was

laid in the diningroom.

The

decorations, which consisted of draperies in Regimental colours, lances with pennons, and palms and ferns, were extremely well done, and produced a pleasing and brilliant

The band of the Regiment supplied

the music for the dances which commenced soon after 9:30 P.M., and continued with little interval until nearly 4 A.M. Prominent among the guests were Mrs. Sclater, Lord and Lady Charles Fitzmaurice,

Major and Mrs, Steele, Major Makins,Captain and Mrs. Burch, and the Rev. and Mrs. Kir-

wan, whilst the other ofﬁcers of the Regiment present in Lucknow, ofﬁcers of other corpS, civilians, and members of other Sergeants’

The final event in the de Lisle Sword C-ompetition also took place about this time, and the afternoon’s sport and entertainment concluded with a musical ride. This was performed by thirty-two non. commissioned officers and men all mounted on chestnut horses, and wearing review order clothing. The diflicult evolutions, which included the bending lesson ata trot, were got through without a mistake, and the efiect of the bright colours of uniform and waving lance pennons together with the

excessive modesty, these would not venture among the gay throng, but looked on from the verandah. Now modesty is a very admir:

glitter of the steel arms and accoutrements

able quality—though not usually connected

was pretty in the extreme. , Credit is due to

with soldiersi—but nnfortunatelyit is often mistaken by outsiders for something

S S.M. Allen,'who trained the ride, and all

Messes and their ladies made, with our own people, a total of about 300. It is worth n0ticing, that least prominentin the assembly were the hosts of the evening, the members of the Mess! We have recently lost several of our “social” members, and with the

which is beautifully expressed in the slang term “putting on dog"! Even if the evil ended here it would not be too bad, but it means further that strangers are not properly entertained, are not introduced to each other, and are compelled to sit about in groups of twos and threes, wondering when the fun is going to commence, and it is obviously impossible for about four members, however willing and energetic, to run the show entirely. From this it must not be supposed that the ball was anything but successful. On the contrary. But to the close observer there was apparent a certain stiffness about the proceedings which the co« operation of all the mess members could have relieved. The decorations, as has .been said, were pretty, the music, and the general

get-up of the affair could not be better, while the supper in the capable hands. of Sergeant Ratciiffe left nothing to be desired, being tastefully laid, and excellently served. Nevertheless the show as a whole lacked the necessary “go,” and this most certainly ought not to be, and need not have been. I would point [out for the beneﬁt of the modest ones thatitis not necessary to hold certiﬁcates for deportment to help to entertain people who .are simply aching to be entertained,

especially

at a dance.

To be

32;

and the medal for Long Service and Good Conduct. -

Weston became a Royal Dragoon in 1890, and was promoted Sergeant in 1897. At the termination of the S. A. war, he took his discharge, but disliking civil life, returned to the Regimentwand re-engaged, He, too, wears the medal for Long Service and Good Cont duct, as well as the two S. A. medals. During the latter part of the war he was in charge of

the Regimental Scouts, under Captain Yorke, and did some good work. He wrote a small work on Scouting, which was well received. Weston possessed a vivid imagination, and was notorious for his “tall”

yarns.

Both

Sykes and he were the recipients of presents from the Mess Members on their departure. Sykes goes to the Shropshire Yeomanry as Regimental SergeantMajor, while Weston intends, after a brief visit to England, to try his fortunes in Australia. Wherever they be may good fortune favour them 1 , The only other event of note is the competition for the Williams’ tent-pegging cup. This silver cup was presented to the Mess three years ago by Mr. C. Williams, then a residentin Lucknow, and a warm friend and ad-

mirer of the Sergeants. Something - has always occurred to prevent the running on“, and not until a fortnight ago was a. competi-

agreeable is in everyone’s power, and this is

tion held.

nearly all that is required.

Jeffrey, who secured the highest aggregate points in two runs with the lance, and two with the sword. Jelfrey is further. to be congratulated on scoring the only goal in the ﬁnal game of the Murray Football Tournament, and thus winning for the Regiment the handsome trophy. ‘ No news has yet been received from the

And so with this

friendly chiding, I pass on. Two old members of the Mess have left the

Regiment since last I wrote,

one being

“ Bill” Sykes, our Regimental (gr-Master. Sergt. and the other, Sergeant “Wally” Weston. Sykes joined the Royals in

exception of three or four, the remainder do

1888, and was promoted Sergeant in 1897.

not dance, and either owing to difﬁdence or

Two years later he was promoted S.Q.M.S. in “ B” Squadron, which post he held during the S. A. war and iu=lndia up to the time of “Tiny ” White’s retirement, when he succeeded the latter as R.Q.M.S. Sykes was a good comrade-add Will be greatly missed. He is in possession of the two S. A. medals

The cup was won by Sergeant

Furlough party, who by this time must have reached England. We are waiting to hear of their triumphal entry into London. Provided they escape the attentions of the police, :itheir advent in the metropolis should certainly‘give

. _ g a ﬁllip to the Territorial scheme ‘. “SERGEANT ”,

THE

EAGLE

REGIMENTAL GAZETTE. i

Disc'larrICS-

a b Q

~ 3

5704, Tptr. Page, on payment of £24.

l e

‘

London Gazette.

Pensions.

lst(Royal) Dragoons—Limit. Walter T. Hodgson to

A MONTHLY CHRONICLE OF THE ROYAL DRAGOONS.

S.S.M. Ra bOi ld. Capt. rice H. D. McNeile promoted, January 27th,

rant ,d g

1909.

. .-

‘

pension of 30 pence per diom.

“ SPECTEMUR AGENDO.”

F'll‘7’[()'l(gh..

“A

’

lsthoyal) Dragonns—L’nd—Lieut.

Charles W. Turner to

be Lieutenant J h 1rice (9 W. T. Hodgson promoted, dated Eli .

, aiiiiary TL . a

5093, Sorgt. Sntoli from lst Mnreh,1909, to 16th March 1009, to proceed to Ambuhi. .5550 , Lee-Corp]. Hughmnn from lﬂtli MnrchJDOﬁ, to 12th

‘

VOL. III. i ..

May, 19“), 10 proceed to Landiiiii'.

I »

5.‘

Y ) w

EDITORIAL

)

NOTICES.

,Ip/wl. ism

Minn”;

w,» rim." i .

.‘ ,..~,-;mm,..- m

5.75

u."

Martin

do.

S.S.M. Elliott. ‘ . Pm, wanton.

do.

’I‘omlins.

1393

Barge.

2‘280

5-388, Unxd. LOB-«Col‘pl. Taylor 10 be Paid Lance-Corporal.

Ai'ntLr.

1624

5874. Pte. -ulcCormzic ‘.

M assay.

—-

5460. Lce..Corpl_ Measures to be Corporal.

- ,

1613 Pic. Thompson. r. I'Iild'dth. 3A

Davidson, Black,

l/’/ mH' i, III/IN, ﬂ; WWW/w rut“. M WWW. MU” [MW[MW-NM

/m_

5:0: 532‘.)

-r.

Hal-“91w ' Hrmidbent

.. “

Emily Ennis

I }

‘ ‘ (midori. to be Unpaid Lance-Corporals.

’~ Lall.

‘ _

. .

John Herbert Rogers mined.

. u inn/.17}! ”I Mari/l ,'. (l r] l“/ 1/1 ‘ ' r 2"” "

Bentlle. hams. U .. 1.enne::ey. A H

' 51., .

Monkhouse. Milton. . ‘ lliitcliinmn. B

1, ;

5085, Lem-Conn. Bawlretn}awnrded certiﬁcates at Ra-

Pindi. qualiﬁed

for

‘

., ,'

‘W ,i,‘,,,,r,-;z/,/:;..,,.~../mmmm #7.» l~

I‘m];

Porter.

i'IIi‘h/iiiiul’i."ii/HW'l"’yi’1“/"L”IH/1‘”MI/"HIMNive‘ll'.

TON.

Illott.

Edmond. Melville. Crossman.

> ‘

Orr.

LL‘WL‘“

India d0.

‘ ‘ -

" from Ixing’s Royal

. ~. Rlﬂeb 5359, Pie. Sutherland transferred to Highland Light In‘ fautry.

Moves.

‘

“mu. in 7 I” A

r r".

M” J. ,.

McCaI‘IhY-

" ' 1’0““0‘“ McCann. Stophpnsmi.

.. .‘ I373

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shire Imperial Yeomanry.

‘r " I ‘ " ‘ix' I : ire. “0L y‘- i. .mon mnipei. ml loiliiiig 1.101<'-u" 1 hi .‘.l. I..—

”in

admit.

Thank;

(M. \'uiir

I,» m' in/Hugf ,‘u vu/i'

C-lnie again.

... 'i . ~ ‘ ~ I ~ ~ . _ I.‘\' .\iV )ilBLm—Ibdnlm lllr ll 2 ii ..~ .i. EU!» 30” “Ill .9” 7

5mm

MONTHLY NOTES-

Iii Wm WM

. '

[me ”in,

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ll/n/v IlHA.~‘.~‘iI/'_l/. u WW,

- .z in “NM/lunk an, Ii, 4,,u/mi/ui1 ii]: i/[i/i/iir/Ifml. ‘1

April has ushered iisell‘in with Its usual accompaniment of hot winds and inosquime5_ (the heat]. 5‘) f‘dl', “IhHSL SUIDO‘Vhat [Tying (lur‘

ing the middle 01 the day, has not: made itselt

White,

“‘1: inn; m - I.lmnwimlgn ii iii) l.Il:lliI{\ ilw l't‘('(‘l]|l ni‘ iiie i‘nlll ‘. i'n"«r- L -ii'ii<ii‘ l" . . . .. V L‘LDL'I'14)~I{",It"\1i:l.7.l’lliu ' "'II1€\\IIilf‘ l.-.iiiw»i: lliv .\_ R. 7,

felt (IUI‘ID 2. the IIIu‘IltF. WIIICII are al 1110513 (MOI. 'But the DESLIIQI‘OUS ‘ .. ' . . a] really 001112 , IDOSQUIU) IS . . . .

.-;;n.eiiv."

"- '

Lee.

Jordan. Sullivan

Stockwoll. Sparrow.

1348 2236

Gardiner. Watts.

Mutter .

93.34 ~ l

woolford ,

Smith.

1635

Fumher'

Allen.

2161

T”“‘”'

1730

Kellie.

1612

Wright

4063, Lee-Corp]. Wells In England for discharge.

1:370

Burrows.

2972

Forrest.

4051. Ple- PUgh 638, Pte. Whyte to'Naini Tal as invalid

139’,

Y n g 0

:“y

"" “mm"

3315, Sergt. Harman

1 . i, r‘md

I4lll'I'll"\V

Cm‘mher-

——

PRINTED FOR THE EDITOR BY W. S. WEI-K, AT 'J‘EE METHCDIST PUBLISHING Horse, LUCKNOW.

”S worst to destroy our sleep and 0m. plinIcal

'l‘lwl‘olln“ln'»' ~iili\<'i‘iiiiio!i~ i0 1V7? Fin/1r liaiw lwi-ii received; , i‘iiluiin-l 'l‘lniiliinwn .. .. .. .. t 1‘ 1; .

beaUI’y'

.i. H.<‘r~nm- "Ni“”30““ . . l. M‘r’ﬂlm“ . 3353:”:

auo presented, such any and fresh pictures, D' V ‘ . ' . . , . , .. _ me rapidly bewniing.r parched and baiieii

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ijibllfn-n:iiir?nn‘is/i-izninQ .. ..‘.71.~..

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S Sykes to England on being posted to ShropQ M -R -~

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5mm, “{ujerihﬂlgs."

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iW iuiiw i/m. in. ,.

Hooper. Wilson. Payne.

FIISSGII.

Cooper, ‘

' d0.

CORRESPONDENTS.

M. S. S~Plvaeml to IUIOW you are duinajwell zit hmne. Senll ”5 ani' nvw~. siil:‘r.'r;i:.-~\\‘u how: in LilllZlII~Il ii plmiligraph ul’ ihe )Iiiri'uy (.llp imam in our .\l:iy illlliJI)I‘l'. though \Vl.‘ min .| “Wild llw H\.iil’ilis“. f I in Llie lifl.}ll"l'>21l‘-rllll)‘I'Hll‘fll'l'l's'fll. ”up" 1 I .l. l‘..—.\'uihing 3"?” 1.91.6)“ <21 U 3'. lngi‘iiiiiR.—'I‘omlin i< “mam“mmmlur L” [1“. Fun-

L. i' .1 \«x‘ l.,

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iv. Kiddie. ' Ei.\va1-ds.

'J‘runsporL duties.

5538. Lee-Corpk Burnige transferred to Army Reserve in Hunt.

r) an

i'}; x

Tri'nisfci‘s.

Pte

W .-

I .

1 1.

mmlu‘s.

Cel'ilﬂc'lifs-

' Leadhecter transferred I Riﬂeman

I I,

r10 '

Boneyman.

57I8

, .

whim... ”my ”in? mom. .,/-~..;- rim/.- u,» «i..i»..imm,i,,,,.,

4449, Sergt. Martin, re»engzigrs to complete 21 years. ..

wal

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Draft arrived in India, 24171.1‘gbruury, 1009. .-

Ilillil,

ANSWERS TO .

A 2

4380, Lee-Sergt. Wilson to be Sergeant.

1-)111-

INIYIL

Promotions and A ppoiiitments,

5123. Corpl. Pegg to be I’ziid Lanm-éei‘gcant. . ‘ 7 y. ‘ _ . 7. _ .. ... \VISLIJINLUSOI] to be andld Lame bergeanb 4514

-H

AI RIL

‘ _* I.I'i I{.\i H.

5804, Flo. Langley from 15L March, 1909, to 16th M arch, 1909, to proceed to Amliala.

IIII/ LbIUX‘ 1

I Hound mph-Mm Volume ‘11. 193.253.“me reins: 3i szilr .ln-i Qunlmhallnl}0:1!‘13' :imilivziiinn,

iiu

n. a .J [mm ) mi (up),

' i 1 11“

0- ~ iih. ”(H de

\V‘l iilh a 1' w \\‘ ‘ e .

\ 98k:

looking. and are taking on their summer line I," \ . ‘ -. , . ‘ . . , ‘

”“38 “in kh‘ll“ “‘9' bummer 1” India-doe: 0f . .. _.-,~

1910'91139; among the lowei anima

limgdom,

neilhel' does it inspire the poeL to song.

the contrary, the birds and

beasts take on

THE EAGLE, ’1‘ H E

anattenuated appearance and a mournful

were the guests of Mr. Faunthorpe, 1.0.8.,

mien, while man, suffering under the awful

and outof a total of 17 pig, Captain Lamv bert and Mr. Irwin each secured four, the best, which measured 32% inches, falling to the former. The second party comprised Major Wood, Captain Lambert and Messrs. Atkinson, Edwardes and Rube, and these were joined by Mr. Faunthorpe and Mr. Hearsey over whose land a good deal of hunting was done. The largest pig of the meet, 31%; inches, was killed by Mr. Faunthorpe. The remaining two of the ﬁrst day falling

climatic discomforts,

becomes

a prey

lassitude and depression, alternating with ﬁts of vile temper and irritability. To the uninitiated, to do nothing but minister to an insatiable thirst may appear neither diﬂicult nor unpleasant, butin reality how awful it

is!

The shade temperature is

somewhere at l05 degrees.

ﬂuttering

Summer is in-

deed upon us 1

to Mr.

The fortunate among us were, but are not. That is to say, all who could have left Luck-

Edwardes and

Mr.

Rube,

respect-

followed on the 5th, whilst on the 30th proxi-

ively. On the following day some excellent sport was enjoyed, there being plenty of ridingin each heat, the total pig killed numbering seven. Late in the afternoon Mr. Atkinson‘s horse was rather badly cut by a big pig which he

mo, Captain and Mrs. Burch left for home

had just speared.

on the S. S. “ Rohilla.”

were put in on return to camp by Major Wood, and later the horse was so much better thatit was possible to take him back with the other horses to Lucknow.

now for a more kindly climate—Major and Mrs. Steele, Captain Grant, Mr. Chapman and Mr. Miles sailed for England by the S. S_ “Macedonia” on the 3rd instant Mr. Watson

Captain Sandbach and Mr. Gough and one hundred non-commissioned ofﬁcers and men left early in the month for Llanora Camp, near Naini Ta], where they will spend the summer. This detachment is

composed of men recently out from home, men lately recovered from sickness, or who are weakly—looking, and the signallers, who go on account of the excellent practice their work in the hills affords them. We

Wish them a pleasant time, and hope to hear of their doings in the hills.

Mr. Irwin has left for Kasauli, a summer station in the Himalayas, to undergo a course

of signalling at the school there. Mr. Charrington, after a long absence on the Viceroy’s staff, has returned to the Regiment. He assumes command of “ B ” Squadron.

Captain Tomkinson and Mr. Houstoun are shooting with the Lieutenant-Governor, Sir John Hewitt, in the Terai. Two parties of officers recently visited the Palia

district

for

pigsticking.

The

ﬁrst

However, four stitches

Early next day Mr.

Atkinson,

who

had

been responsible for the majority of pigs killed the day before, left for Meerut. A

large number of sows were seen, and apart from the leopard killed by Mr. Faunthorpe, the bag only amounted to four. Mr. Rube‘s horse was cut, but only temporary lameness followed. On the last day three pig were killed. Major Wood and Captain Lambert had a fine chase after a big boar, Major Wood eventually getting ﬁrst spear. The pig measured 31 inches. Soon after this tracks were made for Palia, then some eight miles off, and a most

enjoyable four days’ sport came to an end. The bag, seventeen pig, equalling that of the ﬁrst party who went over much the same ground.

they had good sport with the riﬂe, only 2 pig were killed, one going to Mr. Cosens, and the other to Pte. Broadbent. A brief account of the scouting party’s journey is given in this number. They had a most enjoyable time, and business was combined with pleasure to such an extent that no man ever had any

work to do that did not, at the same time’ give him the chance of a shot at some kind of game, No training could be better for a scout than the practical lessons learnt in the jungle, and a good shikari can hardly fail to be efficient in either reconnaissance, or find» ing his way in difficult country.

Our Regimental shikari writes as fol lows :— “Once more the furlough season has arrived, and, provided we can all pass the necessary proﬁciency test, the jungle is waiting for us. Already three parties have proceeded to Lalitpur, Central Provinces, which district

seems to grow in favour year by year. Up to now I have received very little news from that place, but from what i do hear, the C. P. is just as good as ever it was. lhear of cheetal. stag, and sambhur in galore, and also whispers that the old brown bear is on the move again. From the United Provinces we hear of all sorts of game in abundance. The scouts appear to have enjoyed themselves in Kheri, that place being, alas ! barred to the ordinary sportsman.

Mailani district is

course

very good, but hot! To a beginner who wants a few days’ sport and a nice blacx buck or two, I can recommend Orai, G. l. P.

enjoyed, what is considered by many to be the most enjoyable week of the year. We trust that next year success will crown the efforts of the Regiment. Our new station, Muttra, is a. great pigsticking centre, and the sport is conducted by the Muttra Tent Club. Mr. Atkinson has been selected to take over the management of this club when the regiment moves to Muttra, and he intends paying one or two Visits there during the summer, to see how it is run by the 15th Hussars.

The last run of the season with the bounds provided good sport for a fair field. A “jack” was found almost immediately near Bibiapur, and bounds ran very hard for twenty minutes without a check. The sun then became hot, and the scent gave out, and we lost him in the nullah east of the Race Course. The printer’s devil was responsible for an error in our last month’s notice of the bounds. The hounds were out during the season forty—five times, and not “four or five” times as stated. It seems likely we shall be on the move agood deal next autumn,

and by the time we arrive in Muttra, the pig-

sticking season will have commenced.

has, therefore, been decided to sell the hounds, if possible, this summer.

In the departure of Captain Burch,

who

goes on three months' leave pending retire. ment, the Regiment loses its oldest-serving soldier, while the Yorkshire Yeomanry, to

My advice to piscatorial votaries is, try

which corps Captain Burch goes, gains a very able oﬁicer and a charming man. Captain Frederick Burch joined the ranks

only live-bait, the water being too clear for

of the Royals in September, 1879, and served

paste or spooning.

for 19 years in the various grades to Troop

But much good will not

Sergeant-Major, and later, Regimental Quar-

be done till after the rains ”

The Regimental scouts who were working in the same district, spent their leisure time in Shooting and pigsticking, but although

EAGLE

termaster-Sergeant.

' Our competitors in the Kadir Cup

ere

not very successful, but they all thoroughly

On the departure of Major (then Captain and Quartermaster) J. W. M. W00d to take up the appointment of Provost-Marshal at

T H E

EAGLE

T: H E E A G 11 E Aldershot, in 1898, Burch received his coin

mission and was appointed Quartermaster. He. accompanied the Regiment to South Africa and served all through the campaign. For his good work during the war he was twice mentioned

return of the

in despatches, and, on the.

Regiment to England,

was

gazetted Captain, an accelerated promotion. He is in possession of the King's and Queen's medals, and the medal for long service and good conduct, and was decorated. by the German Emperor, with the Order of the Crown of Prussia, when our Colonel-in-Chief came to

Shornclitfe.

out and drill of this Regiment is very good. Horses in good, hard condition, and an etiicient stable management exists. The squad rons drilled steadily on parade, while the cross-country riding of the Regiment showed. that carefulinstruction had been given. to all ranks. The rank and ﬁle are a tine bocy of well-dressed and soldicrly-looking men, smart.

Institutes and messes carefully supervised. In every way the Regiment is lit for ser-

vice."

HISTORICAL RECORDS Of the First or the Royal Regiment of Dragoons, contain-

No less known and esteemed is Mrs. Burch, who has been associated with the Regiment for an even longer period than her

ing an account of its formation in the reign of King Charles the Second, and of its subsequent services to the present time. By General C. P. de Ainslie.

husband.

Prior to their departure Captain (Continued)

Burch was entertained at dinner by the oﬂicers. The regimental band was in attendance and played the customary “ Auld Lang Syne“ and “He's ajolly good fellow," while the esteem in which Captain Burch was held, and the hearty appreciation of his services were evinced in a warm manner by his brother ofﬁcers. Captain and Mrs. Burch are assured of the good wishes of the Regimentin their new sphere. May good luck attend them!

We publish the following extracts from the annual inspection reports of the Regiment which have recently been received. The Inspector of Army Signalling reports 2—“ Equipment complete and in. good order. A very satisfactory inspection. The signallers have been well trained, and the work is good throughout."

About the 16th of March the received orders to move to Las

brigade Narvos,

distant from Alcantara about sixteen miles,

and here, on the eve of St. Patrick’s Day, an order came to Colonel Sir Granby Calcraft, temporarily in Command of the 2nd division of cavalry, vacant by the death of Sir William Erskine, and in the absence of Major-Generals Slade and Long at Lisbon, for the immediate transfer of the horses of the 4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards to the 8rd Dragoon Guards and the Royal Dragoons, which accordingly was carried into effect on St. Patrick's Day, and the 4th proceeded dismounted to Lisbon, there to embark for England. This naturally was a cruel blow to Colonel Sherlock and his regiment, for although since their arrival in the peninsula they had been unfortunate, they were now in high order, and could little have expected this misfortune. Shortly after this circumstance Major‘

Com-

General Slade rej )iized, and at Casa de Milan

manding the Brigade, contains the follow-

he gave up the command of his brigade, being succeeded on the last day of April by MajorGeneral Fane.

The report of the General Officer ing :— “ General Observations. ---The

whole

tu rn-

In the second week in May, Major-General Fane’s brigade received orders to leave Casa de Milan, and to join Lieutenant General Sir

R, Hill, whom accordingly they fell in with 011

the

second

day’s

march a:

small

village on the Alagon, and arriving at Sala-

manca on the Elith of the month, they forded the 'l‘ormes above the city, and encountering a body of French infantry with a few cavalry commanded by General Villatte, who was leavingr Silamanca in the direction of Alba de Tormels, the right squadron of the Royals, led by Lieutenant-Colonel Clifton, charged with great spirit, sabred a number of’the enemy, and made prisoners 143 men and four tumbrils. The regiment had five horses killed, ten men and three horses woundedf Major Purvis’s charger also was killed under him. ‘ After this affair the brigade bivouackedS and the following morning was reviewed by Lord Wellington, and moving on a couple of leagues bivouacked with the whole army near La Orbada until, on the 6th of June, it took up a position to the right of the ﬁne old city of Valladolid, once the capital of Spain. On the 17th the army descended the beautiful valley of the Ebro, than which nothing can be imagined more lovely, fertile, and interspersed with pleasant villages. Making along march on thelélth and bivouacking in an immense wood, the whole army on the following day concentrated at a position between three and four leagues from the city of Vittoria, in which vicinity took place on the 21st what may be considered the crowning victory of the Peninsul L War. Major-General Fane’s brigade on that morning was quite in the rear of the army and did not reach its position in line until about 8 AM. The allied troops then continued slowly to advance, the French giving way, until, about2o‘clock and about three miles from Vittoria, they made a decided stand with two very powerful batteries, which opened tire upon the Pertuguese infantry,

who behaved remarkably Well, and in rearof whom and behind awood was Fane’s brigade which had only a tru npzter, Wright, wounded

by a cannon shot, taking off his foot, of, which he died three months later, andwhose horse was killed. At three in the afternooanieutenantGeneral, Sir Thomas Graham lrtving effectually turned the enemy's p)3ltl()i1, the battle was over, ending in total rout and dis-

order, and the loss of the whole of their artillery, material, stores, etc. and the immediate evacuation of the city. The ground hid been quite unfavourable to the operation of cavalry, who, however,

towards evening pushed on

in pursuit, the 8rd Dragoon Guard; of B‘ane's brigade making a charge accampanied 'by Lieutenant-Colonel the Marquis ofTweeddale,, Assistant Adjutant-General, whose horse was

killed, and while on the ground his lordship was considerably maltreated by some runa-

way French artillery drivers, who left; him for dead inaditc‘n, from which he was not extricated for some time. The casualties of the Royals were only one man wounded, two horses killed and one horse wounded. They were commanded on this occasion by MajorPurvis. On the night of the battle of Vittoria, the brigade moved on about three leagues on theroad to Pampeluna and there bivouacked. On the 22nd came down a terrible and inces» sant rain. Eane established himself in a village close by, and here took place the sale of the prite horses, wines, and other articles ;

after which an equitable distribution was made of the protits, amounting 'to about 530 dollars each to the subalterns, 90 to the cap‘

tains, and 11 to the privates. Besides this several thousand sheep and nearly 200 bul-

locks were captured.

On the 27th of the month the brigade marched er Pampeluna, and occupied some villages in the vicinity of that City, where, in particular, the forage was most abundant, consisting chiefly 'of green birley and

vetches.

THE

EAGLE

The difference of climate here was very perceptible, colder in fact than in England. The blockade of this important place coma menced on the 28th of June ; Fane’s brigade, with the infantry division of Lieutenant» General the Honourable Sir Lowry Cole, and a Spanish corps, forming the investing force. the rest of the army occupying the passes of the Pyrenees at Roncesvalles and Irun. On the 18th of July the brigade was moved to Sanguesa and Sambera, two towns on the river Aragon, twenty-eight miles from Pam-

peluna ; but on the 25th it suddenly returned thither, arriving on the 26th, and during the three days ﬁghting in the Pyrenees it re mained in position, being employed on the 29th in collecting the wounded, who lay about

among the trees and shrubs with which

the

mountains were covered. The Royals remained ten days at Suesta, Fane’s headquarters being at the Village of Sanguesa and Sambera, the 3rd Dragoon Guards occupying the village of Nybao, about a league

distant.

On the 12th of September the regi-

ment was ordered to

Villafranca, a

town

THE In Memoriwm

France, arriving on the 3rd at Campananova, the 4th at Olita, and the 8th at Pampeluna, where it passed the following day. They reached on the eighth day the small town of Tolosain Biscay, the whole road to which, from Pampeluna, is one continued ascent through scenery the most picturesque and attractive, though now partly covered with snow. The road itself, completed by Charles IV, at prodigious expense, is cut out of solid rock. On the 9th, proceeding to Irun,

lying in the richest plain of Navarre, where the regiment there received camp equipage, indeed nothing could exceed the fertility of the soil and the beauty of the country water.

ed by the rivers Aragon

and Argas.

and on the 11th of the month, crossing the Bidassoa, the Royal Dragoons entered

A France. a proud moment for a British army

squadron at Sanao, and one at Mareilla, close

by,

were

the outquarters,

and

the

four

months spent here in such excellent circum— stances, and in the absence of all duty, may be truly considered the most enjoyable period of the whole Peninsula War. Here also an rived from England a draft of four ofﬁcers

and sixty horses. On the 26th of February, 1814, died, to the universal regret of the regiment, Captain George Hutton, a brave and excellent ofﬁcer, a good man, and a perfect gentleman.

which, since the loss of Calais in 1559, had been unknown to that country. Their ﬁrst night, after an exceeding wet march, was

spent at St. Jean de Luz, whence on the 13th they advanced towards Bayonne, arriving on the 18th at Dax, whence the brigade moved

on by Aire towards Tarbes, where it joined the army after a march the longest and most painful perhaps the regiment had ever made, lasting from two in the morning to half-past 11 at night. (To be continued.)

He was buried with every mark of respect An account of the Steele Cup Riﬂe compelion

the

28th,

just outside the

village

Redinas in the Pyrenees, and on the grave was placed a stone inscribed as follows :—

SOUTH AFRICAN LETTERS.

GEORGE HUTTON Militis fortissimi De prima legione Equitatus Britannici cohortis qui obiit 26 Oalendas Februares, Anno Domini 1814 zEtatis suae 86 Elic Tumulus Sacietur. On the 2nd day in March the Royal Regiment of Dragoons commenced its march into

tion will be given in our next number, it

being received too late for inclusion in the present one. —Edz'to7‘.

EAGLE

lnniskilling Dragoons, “T” Battery, R. H. A,,

BLINKWATER DRIFT, Roos SENEKAL, TRANSVAAL, April 80th, 1901. DEAR M, We left Newcastle on the 5th instant by rail, passing bythe historic Majuba Hill, zig-zagged up Laings Nek and through the tunnel into the Transvaal, up to Standerton, at which town we remained for the night. Next day we went on to Pretoria and thence to Middelberg, which was reached on Easter Sunday, and so on to Belfast, where we detrained and

camped on the 10th. No trains run after dark, even during the day they are frequently blown up, wrecked trains being quite a common sight along the line. All the stations are garrisoned and entrenched, and there are numerous small posts in blockhouses at intervals between stations, and at bridges. Butin spite of

these precautions, trains

are continually being blown up, as it is quite an easy matter for a couple of men who thoroughly know the country, to creep up under cover of darkness and lay a mine; a hole being dug at the junction of two rails, and the charge inserted, which is exploded by the weight of the next unfortunate train to pass over the spot, as the earth being replaced after the mine is laid, there is,

course, nothing visible to the eye. We heard thataquantity of dynamite was found near Pan station, a few hours before our train passed through ! On arrival at Belfast we heard that the Boer Commandant Viljoen had murdered apeace envoy (a surrendered Burgher) and that he boasted that no British force could drive him from his position, avery strong one in the hills around Dullstroom and Roos Senekal. On the 36th instant we marched with the

and an Howitzer and Pom-Pom Section to argue the point with reference to the above. After trekking some miles we came in touch with the enemy’s advanced posts who were holding along broken ridge of rocky hills called Swartz Kopjes. A short skirmish took place and the Boers were driven back. By this time it was nearly dark, so we biviiuacked on the spot. Saddling up at 4 AM. next morning we advanced to Dullstroom, a small place of about twenty houses and achurch. We were sniped en the marchfrom some hills running parallel with the road, but at too long range to do any damage. On arrival at Dullstroom we found Douglas’s Column there, composed of the 18th

Hussars, some Australians and the Royal Scots. This force had come from Machadodorp, had been engaged with the enemy the previous day, and had sustained several casualties. The Boers had retired to the hills about ﬁve miles to the north-east of Dullstroom. That evening we made our camp tires of pianos and other articles of furniture, the houses being ﬁred before we left_

Next morning We altered our course, steered nor’-wcst, drove off the

Boers,

burnt all

the farms round about and returned to Dullstroom. Douglas‘ Column marched out the same morning, but in another direction, and we did not see them again. The 2nd Battalion Scot Guards joined us from Belfast and we moved on to Middlekraal, one house and halfa dozen native huts, on the 19th. Early in the day we came in touch of Viljoen’s rear-guard which fell back rapidly after sozne skirmishing. We bivouaCked at Middlekraalfor the night and from traces of ﬁre, remains of food, saddlcry and general rubbish lying about, it was evident the enemy had laid

up there the night before. On the next day's march the road ran nearer the hills and sniping became a nuisance. At

T36

'l‘ H E

E A (,1‘ L E

onepoint where the road ran clos’e under an overhanging cliﬁ', a. solitary sniper bolted of." amongst the rocks. kept up acoustant tire which proved so annoying that we dismounted a troop and tired volleys into the rocks— but withouteﬁ'ect, he still blazed away unhurt

and unconcerned. Another troop then dismounted, climbed the hill and opened out to search the rocks, when a trumpeter, quite a boy. came suddenly on the sniper and shot him through the in ck at ten paces. 'l‘he Boer was only wounded and taken prisoner : he had a cave well stocked with provisions

and plenty of ammunition. Later on we had another skirmish and camped tor the night at Klipbank Spruit. being fired on as we went. down to water. Thu road from here turned to the left througl n pass about three miles long. We expected this defile would have been strongly held by the enemy, and Were surprised the followingr day when we marched through without opposition. On nearing Roos Senekal which lay in a hollow surrounded with hills amongst very rough ground and thick bush, we were tired on from front and both tianks. Our advanced squadrons moved rapidly on through the town, taking 360 prisoners and occupied the ridges 0n the far side, whilst the flank-

ing troops drove back the enemy on their respective sides. I was sent out on right ﬂank with my troop and we got into a rather warm corner amongst some very rough ground. We had two lrorses killed, and one trooper had a bullet through the pummel of his saddle.

Two bullets struck the hilt of another trooper's sword, and I had a spur knocked ot't‘ and a bullet through my pants! We dismounted, got the horses into a nullah and returned

the ﬁre.

All this took place at a fairly short

range: we were shooting with ﬁxed sights. but the hill occupied by the enemy was so thick

‘With bush, and although less than 500 yards away, we could not see the Boers, except one

‘man who was ﬁring over a rock, and only for a few seconds visible. After a few minutes the

THE EAGLE

Boers stopped tiring and galloped oil to the north-west and we moved up to the extreme right of the outpost line where we remained till dark. We found the t‘olu mu had encamp— ed just north of the town. Our squadron had takeusixtyone prisoners. They said, \‘iljoeu had cleared the previous night with 3H1) men. We entered Senekal on the filth and re— mained till the filth. sending out parties to scour the surrounding country, On the 23rd we located some 30ers in caves on a very steep and high kopje: my squadron with it tield gun and pom-pom went out, and the guns shelled the caves whilst we climbed. up. in one of the caves we l'ound a ﬁeld gun which had been burst by dynamite and is said to be one of the guns lost at Colenso On another day we saw smoke from a tnrm. house amongst the hills, and riding quietly

up to it with a patrol, we discovered two Boers at brezikl'ast: we seized them and drank their coli’ee: it was very good. On the 39th we sent in the Boer women and, children who were living in the town and vicinity (about sixty all told) and the prisoners under escort to Middelberg, and in the evening the town was burnt with the exccp» tion of the Laudrost's Ofﬁce, which was blown up the next morning, together" with the captured arms and ammunition. The town on tire was a splendid spectacle ; even Vilj on must have admitted that, and probably he watched it from some of the hills

in the distance.

We marched to this camp.

Blink water I) rift on the Steei port river, on the 29th My tioop was out on the right ﬂank

about three miles from the Column. We spotted tlii-ee waggons, away to our right, and

THE KADIR CUP, 1909. The Regiment was represented at the Kadir this year by Major Wood, Captain Sandbach, and Messrs. Miles, Irwin and Atkinson, each

ofﬁcer having entered two horses; Captain Lambert was most unluckily prevented from

going at the last moment bya sharp go of

fever.

The contingent, with the exception of

with his name, so that one could wander round inspecting one's opponents of the morrow, knowing exactly who they all were. This is the thirty-ﬁfth year the Kadir Cup has been competed for after pig; from about 1870 to 1874 it was simplyaPoint-to-Point Race, the same as the Hoghunters‘ Cup of to-day. In the old days the competitors did net number

more thanadozen or so, but have been increasing gradually, till this year tlere was the record number of 145 horses entered, out

which 116 actually started. Every one arrived in camp during the course of Sunday, and after dinner the heats in the ﬁrst round were drawn as usual.

The line started at 8 A. M. next morning, the fifty elephants composing it making a fine show. Below will be found accounts taken from the Pioneer of all the heats in which Royals were riding, and though Atkins on who deserved to go lurther still, was the only one to survive the firstround, it will be seen that most of the others had a good race for their

Later, we rounded up iliirty head of cattle and drove them into camp. The Boer fami. lies are laagered here for the present. We have pitched ramp, and today, 80th, are just Yours, ' “ otT on reconnaissance.

in pigsticking we shall gain at Muttra, we can conﬁdently hope for better things next Major Wood unfortunately missed year. his ﬁrst heat, as he only arrived in Meerut

OLLOL.

though he came out by the ﬁrst train to Gajraula. and galloped all the way from the

station, only arrived just in time to ride his second nomination which he sportingly did, though still suffering from a broken rib and not having had time to change into riding kit. On Monday the second round was run off:

leaving nine men in for semi—ﬁnals, the three Major Wood, arrived at Gajraula station in the early hours of Sunday, 21st March, and after breakfasting at the ‘Hog’s Head Arms’ rode out the l-t miles to Sujmanna, where, as last year, the camp was pitched ; here we found, as usual, everything perfectly arranged for our comfort, and the stables especially, situated in two adjacent baghs, deserve mention, each horse having his appointed place ticketed

half a dozen mounted men, and after making a long detour to cut ll em oti‘, found to our great disgust they were coming in to surrender.

‘

57»

money, and with the additional experience

late the previous night from Bombay, and

heats of which were soon decided on Wednesday morning, leaving Major Carden, 17th Lancers, Captain Birch, 29th Lancers, and Mr. Vei non, 60th Rifles in for the final ; it was any odds on the former as in addition to being his second year in the final, both the other men were on ponies, a most unusual thing, but as

it turned out Vernon on ‘Fireplant’ had the legs of the horse even on the open maidan and

beingahle to turn inside him (though riding in aplain snafﬂe) won the Cup, the ﬁrst in-

fantryman to do so for many years. After lunch the two point-to-poin: races were run off. The Horse Race was over a course of considerably over the advertized four miles of fair pigsticking country in which a tributary of tlie Ganges had to be twice crossed. A field often faced the starter includ ing Miles on ‘Cocos‘ and Irwin on ‘Wandering Willie,’theformer fell, luckily without damage and the latter, after making most of the run, ning, finished 41h, the race being won by Mr. Winser’s (South Lanes), ‘Black Coon,’ a. caster from ii Cavalry Regiment: two Sports men mistaking the course swam the Ganges itself and the favourite ‘ Diabolo,’ last year’s winner, dived head first into the aforesaid tributary, thus destroying his chances. The Pony Hoghunters looked a good thing for our only representative Captain Sand bach on ‘Double Keys‘ which ran 2nd last year. Riding a well judged race he had it won from a field of nine when the pony blundered and came a proper crumplerwithin 30 yards of the winningptvst, acruel piece of luck, and the race was won easily by Mr. Warren’s (R. F. A.) ‘Jenny Jones ’; Captain Sandbach

T H E-

EAGLE

THE fall, deserved special sympathy on his bad luck. Heat No. .‘2.—Major Hambro, 15th Hussars, Sans Reproche; Mr. Irwin, R. D, Sammy; Mr. Woodside, R. El. A., Bill; Captain Meade, 10th Hussars, Neptune (spear). Umpire,

Captain Ward rop.

after jin k, but failed to spear. ' Learmonth was next on and drew blood.

‘

SECOND NOMINATION.

A fair pig ridden in ﬁrst class style by all the heat especially Irwin for two miles in heavy jhow. Hambro fell and Meade got the spear in the open. Heath/o. 5.—Mr. Megaw, 15th Hussars, Speedwell; Mr. Palmer, 16th Hussars, Skyscraper(spear); Captain Lockett, 17th Lancers, Golden Gleam; Captain Sandbach, R. D,,

Wallace. Umpire, Captain Charrington. Slipped after a sow. Sandbach and Megaw did most of the work;the former missing

his spear let in Palmer who stuck the pig soundly and won the heat. Heat No. 8,—Major Wood, R. D , Kataroola;

Major Carden, 17th Lancers, Ugly (spear); Major Hay, 5th Cavalry, Line-k6,; Mr. Scott, Umpire, Colonel A. R. D., Veronique. Vaughan.

Major Wood had not arrived in camp and the other three were let go after a big boar who made straight away. A jink let in Hay, but Carden got on again shortly after and

speared heavily. breaking his spear in the pig. Heat N0. l3.—Captain Stirling, R. H. A., Caress; Mr. Atkinson, R. D., Echo; Colonel Vaughan, 10th Hussars, Vedette ; Mr. Faunthorpe, I.C.S., Brown Girl (spear). Umpire, Mr. Paynter.

A good boar.

Cocos ; Lord Francis Scott, Fermoy ; Captain Charrington,15th Hussars, ’l‘oﬂ‘ee. Umpire, Major Pritchard. A long fast run after a jinking boar. Miles did most of the work. Charrington got on

Heat No. 17.—Mr. Atkinson, R. D , Leopard (spear); Mr. Warren; RF. A., Ginger; Mr. Day, R. H. A., Brown; Major Wood, R. D,, Express. Umpire, Major Pritctard. A good fast run. Atkinson and Warren did most of the hunting, and both had several digs at the pig before Atkinson drew blood.

Heat No. 2‘2.—-Mr. Sopper, 17th Lancers, Posey ; Mr. lrwin, R. D., Wandering Willie; Captain Forsyth, R. F. A., Pom Pom; Mr. Vernon, 60th Riﬂes, Baron Trek (spear). Um-

pire, Captain Wardrop. A good hunt through heavy j/Low; all the heat up and any one’s pig. Vernon got the

spear. Heat. No. 2-1.—Major Hambro,

Hus-

sars, Entilade (spear); Captain Sandbach, R. D., Huntsman; Mr. Miles, R, D, Stepma; Mr. Bruen, 15th Hussars, Sandstone. Um-

pire, Captain Wardrop. In the ﬁrst run the two leading spears collided in thickjhow, and the heat was run again. This was a fast hunt in light cover. Sandbach missed the spear which went to Hambro. The boar was ultimately killed in the river. Heat N0. 9.——Mr. Atkinson, R. D, Leopard; Mr. Parker, 10th Hussars, Research ; Captain

all three competitors being in a good line. In the race up to the pig Garden and Vernon were about level ; after some quick jinks the boar turned sharp back. This let in Birch, huthe failed to avail himself of his chance. Garden and Vernon riding very hard came up almost simultaneously. After another jink at which Vernon on his pony was the quicker round, he speared cleverly whilst he and Garden were riding neck-and-neck. This all through was a fast run heat over easy country. HOGHUNTERS' CUP.

.. .. .. ..

.. ..

:‘2 3 0 0 (I 0

Faunthorpe went on

and speared

won the heat. Heat No. Ink—Captain

Learmonth,

15th

Hussars, Eldorado.

Umpire, Captain Wardrop. Heat sent off after a good quick hog. All after him in a bunch, and all had a chance in turn. Spear ﬁnally went to Meade.

FINALS.

15th

Hussars, Eldorado (spear); Mr. Miles, R. D.

The object of the patrol was a test for the scouts so as to help the selecting of the regimental scouts for this year It will be remembered that a similar ride took place about this time last

year, and it is necessary

that one should take place, as, if a man has a weakness in any part of this work, it is sure

to show itself on the trek, although he might be. a crack scout about barracks, where he knows the country as well as he does the back of his hand. The march was done in easy stages,

the

average mileage being about twenty-six per day. The horses were fed on 1.0le of corn andabout lﬁlbs. grass. The men foraged for them selves. One bed blanket and one saddle rug

Major Tilney's D. (l.

Captain Forsyth’s Lochinvar .. .. 0 Won easily by two lengths; six lengths between second and third.

PON Y H 0G H UNTERS’ CU P. Mr. Warren’s Jaer Jonas Mr.1“raser’s SERREFILE . Mr. Nicholl’s MosaNsrmN .. Captain Sandbach’s Double Keys (fell) Mr. Stampo’s Phobhos (tell) Mr. Adams’s Clontari’ Mr. Brooke’s Fellah Mr. Jenkin’s Sam Mr. \Vinser’s French Mail Won easily.

away with the numnah. This year we had a proper pack saddle, which answered its purpose splendidly.

We reached Sitapur on the second day and were entertained by the non-commissioned officers and men of the Essex Regiment, who are stationed there. Lakhimpur was the scene of thethird day‘s halt. Here we left the railway which had up to now run parallel to the road, and trekked across country to the Sarda river, which had to be crossedin boats. This river is over 200 yards wide and abounds with crocodiles, several of which were seen and potted at. The crossing occupied about three hours of our time, some of the horses were a bit troublesome, but in the end with a little gentle persuasion, their fears were overcome.

I forgot to mention that a pet, in the shape “ LON G-DISTANCE PATROL.”

Mr. Vernon, 60th Riﬂes, Fireplant (spear):

Learmonth,

were carried under the saddle, thus doing .

Meade, 10th Hussars, Neptune (spear) ; Captain

next, and as Vaughan could show no blood,

EAGLE

Mr. \Vinser’s BLACK Com: Mr. Fraser’s Dinnom Lord Francis Scott’s Fannoy Mr. Warren’s (linger Mr, Irwin’s Wanderingr Willie Mr. Nutting's Acorn Mr. Miles‘s Cocos(fell)

After going two hundred

yards Colonel Vaughan shot out on the horse that won him the Kadir Cup two years ago and nursing the pig nicely ‘speared in the

Spine.

15th

tain Birch, 29th Lancers, Monarch. Umpire, Major Kennard. The heat was slipped to a fair-sized boar,

CCQCCCO:(°H

who was fortunately none the worse for his

MajorCaiden, Nth Larcers, Gunjaish ; Cap-

On March 12th a party of scouts, consisting

of twenty-ﬁve men and thirty-nine horses, under Lieut. E. Rube, left Lucknow for Pali... a distance of about 140 miles. Palia, as nearly every one knows, is in the Kheri district, and the country round about is well known for the splendid shooting and pigsticking it alfords.

of a small pony, accompanied us on the march. The pony’s name is William Henry. and it will be remembered that he took lst prize in the Lucknow Horse Show as the property of Lieut. E Rube. In crossing the river William Henry managed to fall down a hole in the

deck of the boat, it cannot be called anything else, as the only purpose of this hole, appeared to be to allow the boatman to bale the

T HE

EAGLE THE

water'out which had leaked in.‘ We very soon made up our minds to take the side out of the boat if no other means could be found of getting W. H. out, but in the end, by much tugging and pulling of straps passed under the pony, he was safely landed After allowing the horses a few minutes to roll in the sand, we saddled up and made for Palia, which we reached at about 4 P. M. on the 16th, the march having taken ﬁve days, about 1% days more than last year. Last year we covered as much ground as possible in a day; this year we worked our way up. Each day different men were sent out from the main body to make maps and reports on the country on each side of the road, while an advance party was sent on an hour ahead to the next halting-place, where they had to have the water troughs rigged up or asuitable place found for watering and a full report of the village, ready for the main body on its arrival. At Palia the Colonel and three other oﬁicers joined us, and we had a very enjoyable time,

_ After having’ killed or scared the game around Palia, we trekked about eight miles on the homeward road to a Village named Tilakpur, and after a three days’ halt, further on to Bamhanpu r, where we stayed until the 26th, then started for Lucknow in earnest. Our halt on the 27th was on the estates of

pigsticking and shooting, with afew hours’

DE LISLE SWORD COMPETITION.

work thrown in to relieve the monotony. One of the scouts succeeded in sticking a large

The third annual competition for the Bestman~at~arms in the Regiment took place con-

boar, which had been wounded on some previous occasion and had run amuck. The pig charged him from an out-house where it had

currently with the Squadron and Regiment-

taken refuge, and committed suicide on this scout’s spear. The bag for the journey, not counting the

ofﬁcer’s numerous kills, consisted of ﬁfteen nilghai, nine cheetal, fourteen black buca, and

alarge number of peacock, bare and jungle fowl. Several good heads were obtained, the best being a cheetal, measuring 38;, inches. Before starting homeward the scouts camp looked like a slaughter yard : every tree had several heads hung upon it to dry, while the ground was covered with skins of various animals, few of which reached Luck-

now.

Panther were seen, and beats arranged, . » ' but without success.

the Rajah’Raghnbar Singh at Adilahabad, and two of our party had the honour of dining with His Highness. We had a camp ﬁre atAtaria, which was the last camp before reaching Lucknow. Here refreshments in the shape of bottled beer and

tea were provided by the O. C. Scouts, and a very enjoyable night was spent in singing and joking We reached Lucknow at ll. A.M. on the 81st, after twenty days’ continual enjoyment, horses and men none the worse. The. work done by the scouts touched on all necessary

points. '

FLEURDE-LYS.

al Assaults-at—arms, which latter were no-

ticed in our last number.

The following was

(d) , Field Work.

EAGLE

Maximum marks, 25.

DIVISION AL ASSAULT-AT-A RMS.

Map-reading ; compass and despatch riding. Old' readers willremember thata silver Presentation Sword, suitably inscribed, presented by Colonel de Lisle, and a gold medal goes to the competitor securing the greatest aggregate points—whilst silver and bronze medals are given respectively for the 2nd and 8rd highest scorers. As in the Assaults, the competition for the Sword was, this year, very keen, and the skill displayed in the different tests of a very high standard. The competition opened with the Marksmanship test, when Sergeant Wilson secured “highest possible” marks for the best score, several other competitors running him very close. In the Field Work test which followed, “highest possible" points were gained by Sergeants Wilson, Jeffrey, Allchin, Andrews, Mitchell, Coe, and Sales The Horsemanship test came next, when in no one case were full marks obtained, the best being 23% gained by Sergeants Jeffrey, Allchin and Bean. The ﬁnal test, Skill-at-arms, took place just prior to the Regimental Assault, when by leaving the sheep-cutting event to be run off at the conclusion of the afternoon ’5 sport, great interest was created from the fact that about six competitors were so close in aggregate points as to be any of them a likely winner. The favourites were Sergeants

the test for this year :— (a) Horsemanship. Maximum marks, 25. Marks will be awarded for correct position of man and horse at all paces, the ba» lance of the horse; crossing difﬁcult country and over fences, and the ability to ride at full

The sheepcutting proveda most interesting event and was keenly contested, and as keenly watched by the many spectators, As a

gallop in a collected manner.

result of two excellent runs,

The above took place between the 8th and 13th of March last, when in the mounted events the Regiment was well representedThe other British mounted units competing were “8 ” Battery, R. H. A., 19th Battery, R. F, A., 20th Battery, R. F. A., and 77th Battery, R. F. A. In the Otiicers’ events, Mr. FitzGerald gained second in Tent-pegging with lance, and second in Sword o5. Sword (mounted), Captain Tomkinson was ﬁrst in Tent-pegging with sword, the section tent-pegging was won by a section comprising Captain Tomkinson and Messrs. Watson, FitzGerald, and Ed wardes, whilstin the Riding and Jumping competitions Captain Tomkinson secured ﬁrst place in the under 14'? class, and Mr. Edwardes second in the over 142 class. The events for Rank and File were adjudged as follows :— SWOId

us.

Maillot-Arms.

Maximum marks, 25

Tent-pegging with lance ; tentpegging with sword; sword u. sword; sheep-cutting.

(c)

sword; points with

Marksmanship. Maximum marks, 25. Five rounds at 200, 500, and 600 yards ;

any position ; match—targets. Highest score made, 25 marks ; one mark deducted for every 2 points below highest score.

3rd, a’ergt. Bean, R. D. Ist, Sergt. Bean, R. D.

711:], Sergt. Newton, RD. 3rd, Corpl. Vanson, B..D.

Tent-pegging with Lance,

Tent-pegging tions.

Sec—

The winning team comprised Sergeants Timson and Jeffrey and Corporals Vanson and McLellan.

lst, Corpl Vanson, 87:5 points .

Presentation

2nd, Sergt. Sales, 3rd, “ Wilson,

Gold Medal. Silver Medal. Bronze Medal.

Sword

5th,

“

Mitchell, 80

lst, 77th Battery, R. F. A.

the event wenn

honour for the second time, having won also in 1907. The ﬁrst ﬁve competitors and their points are given below :—

85% 844;

lst, “ D” Squadron, R. D. 2nd, 19th Battery, R..F.A.

3rd,“ A ” Squadron, RD.

to Corporal Vanson, who secured this coveted

Allchin, 82$

B.S.M. Spencer, R.

2nd. Pte. Holmes, R. D. 3rd, Sergt. Featherstone, R. F. A.

Riding and Jumping by

lst,

F. A.

Sales and Wilson, and Corporal Vanson.

4th,

lst, Corpl. Vanson, R. D. 2nd, Pte. Taylor, R. D.

Heads and Posts

Sections.

(b)

SW 0 r d

(Mounted).

and

9nd,“ 1) ” Squadron, R 0, 3rd,“ A “’ Squadron, R.D.

It will be seen that the majority of the prizes were won by the Regiment, whilst in two of the events we secured all three prizes. The prize for Best‘man-at-arms was won by Sergeant Bean, who is to be congratulated on his win. All the events were keenly and cleverly contested—the programme included a musical Ride by the Regiment.

THE FOOTBALL. The annual Inter-Squadron tournament for the Cup presented by Count von Quadt has just been played, and resulted in a win for the Band. Played for ﬁrst in 1905, it has formerly been competed for on the league principle, 1.12., each team meeting each other team twice, but this year in order

to get it over before the departure of the Detachment for Manora Camp, the knock-out system was employed. The four squadrons and the Band each entered a team, thus necessitating one game and 3 byes in the ﬁrst round—“ C " Squadron beating “ D, ” left four

THE

EAGLE eleven.

Our team, as it now stands, is nicely

balanced and sound,

but it

must not be

forgotten that one or two men out of their customary places Willin all probability dis— organize it, Some of the players will leave the Regiment next trooping season, so that it is not too early to think about replacing them. They themselves, as sportsmen, will see the wisdom of this, and stand down in favour of the younger blood. There will be many opportunities for testing the new material, and it would seem advisable to arrange a series of games against the best local teams for this purpose.

teams in the semiﬁnal. Of these “A beat “ B ”—after a draw of one goal all——by ‘2— nil. and the Band beat “C " by 3—1111. The ﬁnal between “A ” Squadron and the

Band took place on the 25th ultimo. The Band opened briskly and within 21. few minutes

from the stai11 Mr. Holt taking agood pass from Waters essayed a shot which narrowly missed the upright. The ball was then transferred and the Band defence had some warm work, defending their goal from the \igorous attack of the opposing forwaids. After a gixeand- take game of some minutes

“ A ” Squadron handled in the penalty area, and the Referee awarded a penalty kick, which was nicely converted by Waters—the

only point of the game. After the interval “A” took up the attack and tried hard to equalize. Clark forced a corner, which, however, was kicked wide. Later, Moore hada chance, but Watson saved admirably. Just before time, Lovell, for the Band, centred

beautifully, and another point seemed about to be added, but Helliwell cleared in his usual Vigorous style. The Band were thus winners by one goal——nil. Although brief, the tournament produced some good sport, and it was remarked that several of the Squadron players showed 10 distinct advantage. Itis to be hoped ﬂat the Regimental team selection committee will give these men a chance in the premier

SERGEANTS’ MESS NOTES. Not much of consequence has occurred since last we wrote, except that we have started the punka/is, taken to white clothing, and altered our meal hours to suit the hot weather period, which is here, worse luck! once

again.

Sergeants 'l‘ruste, Wilson and Small.

wood are laughing at us from their point of vantage at Manora Camp, Sergeants Ratcliffe and Martin are away ona shooting trip in the Central Provinces, Sergeant Mitchell has left us to take up a berth as Coachman to the

am merely echoing the sentiments of all the members of the Mess by wishing them both happiness and prosperity. A most successful social evening was held in the Mess Room and on the tennis courts on Wednesday, 14th instant, when the members and their ladies, with a sprinkling of outside friends, enjoyed a few songs and some delightful dances. It was better attend' ed than many of our more ambitious social efforts have been, and credit must be given to the organizers to whose energy this is due. With many of the ladies leaving shortly for the hills, we cannot hope to continue so successfully, but we can at least do our best for those whose misfortune it is to remain at head-quarters. The Mess has again been augmented by the transfer on promotion of several members of the Corporals' Mess, and the promotion of S.S.M. Allen to Regimental Sergeant-Major is another and pleasing event of the month.

5336, Corpl. Vanson to be Paid Lce-Sergeant. 49‘31 “ Thomas to be Unpaid LCC."Sergeant. 5132 “ Kite do. 5529 “ Stalker do. 5403, Lee-Corpl. Dorling to be Corporal. Fitch do. 5241 “ McLellan do. 5287 “ Morris do .1821 Pte V\ nods to be Unpaid Lce. C—orporal. 5684, ’lptr. Hewitt do 5094’ Corpl. Miller to be Unpaid Lce.--Sergeant. R ecr 11113. Edward Rogers joincd. Ccrtiﬁcaiea. Lce--Sergt Wischhausen awarded certiﬁ rate on passing examination in use and care of telephone

equipment. Lce. -Scrgt Kite awarded certificate 011 completing couise of Physical Training. " , Lce.--Ucrpl. Edwards awarded certificate on completing course of Physical Training. . . Lce —Corpl Taylo1 awa1ded 2nd class certificate 01‘ Education , Lce ~Corpi. Reading awarded and class certificate 01 Education. Ptn. Surrett awarded 2nd class certificate of Education. Ptc. Fiippancc awarded 2nd class certificate of Eduv cation. Pie. Grady awarded 2nd class certificate of Ednc11ti011.

Pte Cooper awarded 2nd class certiﬁcate of Edu~

cation Boy Wood awarded 2nd class certiﬁcate of Educ a—

Cronin

is promoted

Regimental

Quarter-

master-Sergeant, Lawrence, Squadron Ser' geant-Major in ” B ” Squadron, and Timson

and Rapkin are promoted Squadron Quarter' masterSergeants. Severaljuniors have gone up the roll thereby. Good luck to ‘em I “ SERGEANT. ”

Lieutenant-Governor of Madras, and Sergeant Oxford has joined the School of Musketry at Pachmarhi as an Instructor.

EAGLE

men. ‘ Boy Plumbiey awarded 2nd class certificate of Edn— . cation Pro. McFarlane awarded 3rd class certificate of Education. Pte. Hutchinson awarded 31d class certificate of Education Ptc, Gardner awarded 3rd class certificate of Edncation. Pic Edwards awarded 3rd class certificate of Edncation. Ptu. Rogers awarded 3rd class certificate of Education. Boy Paley awarded 3rd class certificate of Educa-

tion

The remainder

REGIMENTAL GAZETTE.

Ptc. Robson awarded nursing certificate. " P111vis do. do.

are present, preparing for the delights (?) of Promotions and Appointments.

a summer in Lucknow. We had the mournful pleasure of a visit from Captain Burch at the end of last month, who

came to bid us good-bye.

Prior to his pro

3325, S. S. M. Allen to be Regimental Sergeant-Major. 4127, S. 0. .\l.S. Cronin to be Regimental QuartermasterSergeant. 4226, 3Q MS. Lawrence to be Squadron Sergeant-Major,

motion to the commissioned ranks Captain Burch was for many years a member of the Sergeants’ Mess, though not by any means for that reason alone are we sorry to lose him. The customary toasts were sung and good The non-commissioned wishes exchanged. ofﬁcers of the Regimental staff who have had

.1426, Scrgt. Rankin to be Squadron Quartermaster-Scrgcant.

the pleasure of working under Captain Burchgave some slight expression of their apprecia-

5075

tion in gifts to him, and to Mrs. Burch.

Discharges. 251‘, Sczgt. Weston, after 15 years’ service. Service. 4111, Sgt Puyne 1e- engaged to complete ‘31 years‘ Service 4342, Pte.\o1t11 do. do. Exmninations.

44111, Scrgt.Ti1nson to be Squadron

QuartermasterScr-

geant. 5123, ch.-Scrgt. chg to be Sergeant.

982, Pte. Kelsey passed cxaminationin Eiement’y Pushtn. 18'20 " Ogley do. do.

5405, LCO.-Sel‘gt Angus to be Sergeant. Moves. 4570, Unpaid Lee-Scrgt Ratcliifc to be Sergeant. 5169 Do. Smallwood to be Sergeant

4575

Do.

Wischhausen to he Paid Lce Sergeant.

Do.

Martin to be Paid Lea-Sergeant.

Schoolmaster Roots to Mount Abu, to take charge 111’ school. .1001 S1rut. Oximd to Pachmaihi as Musketry-Instructor 4772, Corpl.la1rell to Naini 'lal as Drill-Instructorto Diocesan School.

THE

EAGLE

Sergt. Davis to England, wife being invalided. Pte. Lacey to England on transfer to Army Reserve, ‘: llioberts to Englgnd on discharge. ' ain . o.

Vlckery Green McIntosh Ryder

Hall Furlough and Learc. Sergt. Ratcliffe to Lalitpnr, 8th April, 1909. to 315i, May. 1909. Sergt. Martin do. do. Pie. Pritchard do. do. Lea-Corp]. Rivett to Lalitpnr, ~1st April, 1909, to Sist.

May 1909.

5412, 5081, 5l95, 541?»,

Lee -Corpl. Foord S. S. Giles Pte. Wel‘ster " McGregor “ Oliver “ Burns , Leer-Corp]. Bray ‘, Pbe. Castle “ Dye

Lewis Manning do. . Murkot-t to Landonr‘ 1st April, 1909, to 3151; May‘ 1009. Corpl. Plus to England, 6 months. Pte. Sutton to Calcutta, 18th Maicli,19()9,t03ra May, 1909. He. Griiliths to Knsaull, lstApril,1909.to 31st May 0.0“ Q Pte. (lotilitl'e to Kasanli, 1513 April. 1000.130 31st M ay, 1909 . Grey to Kasauli,15th April, 1900,t01~1th June, Pte. Brightwell to Kasuuli 15111 April, 1009. to 14th June. 1909 Sergt. Mitchell to Ootacamund, 20111 March, 1909, to 30th June, 1009.

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‘ ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 4'1

Limxxcw. JNIHA.

CAPTAIN H —Thank you for news.

Wish all ‘o'ur‘

MAY. 1909. Satyr/{Minus (u " Wu [vim/It“ m'r (mfollmrx g~ Subs-will .«- u! Inn/He. [WWII/mm .. Subs-will luv/1'41 " " .. Non-rum”. ”tum! our/i NW and mm ) 1/ ”0““ (pl-«MIL! nu min m or ”I'jl‘OI/HIN), .

11w (mm/1n

110.91 fr”

Corpl. MacDouall.

EDITORIAL NOTICES.

.. l 1” I'M“!

1)l'i(’ellél‘l'()]u/Iﬂ V'_//iv‘rl'.\' .. .. .. l’/‘i(‘l' pu' l: 11/ /u [marrowmissimwl officers and mm. .. .. n+0 NulmrriMi/ms m'r: (lm- in minute/r and should 1;» mm m 1/”, [villi/0r;

Pie. Moore,

Pte. Boyles,

SATURDAY, MAY 15m, 1909.

("n ’1']st [fog/u! [Wm/0mm. .‘lll/wni/(mms N'z'lllw (II'K'IIOH'IUIf/Pd in (/1 ,, 110.11 muntw' of flu 1)(11/(-/'1)/zhlis/z(/Z (lflrl‘ Perez'M. Subscribers c/uuu/illr/ WHIP (Itll/l‘éNW’N, ll/‘Ucr/i/i/lﬂ an [mu mr'm'[m({//1.,IH' lw/u‘irw I/n l4,(’{/1'r/IHNI should notify Hm 11'4117101' of (In new mlvhws. .l limit/v! number of ix/n't‘ ('Upim' (ll'v l'rrp/ in. Mag-l- (111/1 pm; 1;; mm ”It appliwuliml In f/n‘ ly'x/z'fm‘.

friends at home would be as kind; ‘ l T. T.——Tha'nks for good wishes. Subs‘ received. F. R —Glad to get your letter. Began to wonder, if you had forgotten us I , BALBL‘S —We wish you both success. P. and O.' is, of course, the most direct route. ' PAT —We cannot say oiilhand which is right. -Whyr not put up your argument in The Eagle. Should produce interesting discussion, 0. O w'l‘ale received Your copies were sent. R. T. R.—Yes, we have heard that Muttra. being abolished

likely in our time All(Wm/um[NI/[011x [ll/NM]!!! for [willow/inn ill. " T/rr Elli/Zr should [it H‘I’I'HH/ on mu sir/v, oft/1r mum' 0R1”. (IIId/‘rsxui It; IJn Editor, (Hui N/lUI/ll] I'M W'v‘I/Ill/H/Himt' by Hut H'I'i/r/"s 11111110 (HUI m/I/r T/lt li'lii/ﬂl‘ ("i/1120’ luv/«Nah (0 71+ I'M/mu. hl/ 1211-1111.]; 1' .1151. nor In MIN/'12 (my L'onf/‘i/uzlimz euzlmx spa'iully lie'nllﬂl 10 :10 .m. ' ('un/rilmfium WONDIIWMW I/n [Ni/w no! (411 4 Hum l/u 511/ of Mir/L Jun/1.10, /u «1mm I‘ll/ilimzrz‘au in [/1er mun/[1’s 1mm,

a cavalry station,

though no:

Cavalry lines are, we hear,

be constructed at Jhansi.

SONIA.—“ Semper ﬁdelis et idem" is his motto. L. A. B,—Send us any news from Naini. Always" glad to hear from you. . ' ATKINS—Can oti‘er you no help~not even sym»

pathy. Appears to have been your own fault entirer , .Ile/Nw's. INN (HM Mew/1!. or r/w'r Hill/11$ rm (IN/[H7 Io min/mo aim/f. In flu I'Jdilw- (um ilmn, nfnm-s {ii-(M ft) 1/1. of ;,Z¢,.,.,.S/ 1,, our I‘PUI/W/W. I/ has luwn Hafizwl pin-II 1/(11‘11/ UI/l/ num- of art/m/ulw's [MW/awfulH'iI/z «mu! I'll’rl'fN/ by 1 l'll/ [I’m/«(Ian Nil/l x 'l/ mumminz'lw/z'nnx 1 '. //'/« Hut/wt ‘ lawn/111m HINI y/Irlinfz/im'm/ Hull link b('/II'H‘II 1 WW m'rwl’. m r‘/l ix (In mil/wry ”MM off/u- 7mm]: /'/n (M l’l/I'f/w‘ iii/'II/m‘ I'm/tiers In min/11‘! told/u (my inn/1im‘m n-llz'w/I ll! [mm 711' VIII/I In (ms/1w by Inns-«m «If l/(U'i/l{/(Irm,v.v (I, 'm [Kw/immm! r» wrds. Hus: will. as fur (IN I'/>S\‘I‘//lé, In: «(u/H INT/I1 wwhl' ” .lux/ law In I'0/'/v.v[)(;/zr/»/l/,.v.” ll'l/ll‘w Ilu‘szI/I'JL 1! Fully Ill/[(Iltl' will/n will. [fill 'j'vu‘ .lv/l‘r/'/I'Nv'I/1rlrfv~‘ "NH in usa/‘Mi/lm/ on (Ill/lliv‘fl/I'Uli N10 It‘llz'lul'.

\\'l-‘. but; m: -lm<\wlcilgc will] tlumks llll‘ receipt 01‘ the follow»

1m.r ('lllllyl‘lllllul‘ull N.

" St. George's (lztzullwf' " The White Lulu-ma? (htzolli‘f‘ The follrn\‘in;.r subscriptions to ’/'/u (J. King. I‘ISQ. -. Capt. Hon. H. K‘. (lucsl ’l‘. Tiinson. 1“.er .. (loloncl Munslivld I“. It Byvrlvy. Esq. Colonollr in .I. IS. l’(' 11". Hm. .I. H. Hull. l‘lsq. Iv‘. KL‘XIl()lLl~'. Esq. (‘ol'l'eo Shop . {. ;\. 'l‘. A.

.. The X. H. H.

[fur/7r lutw lll‘l‘ll received :7» g o was L'a Mime-id‘s-igvx

0..

“ SPECTEMUR AGENDO.”

VoL. III.

Corpl. Marlow,

LL.

Sr/‘um/ rnll‘ -Sergt. Simpson,

I— O 0

Seaton,

.—l _I < m

Top I'M/u —<Corpl

a: :J O t-

Pte. Watson,

‘

[fr/ml I mr, —Pte. Hart,

Fte. Duckworlh.

Pie. Aahworth.

Capt. & Adjutant Tornkinson,

Z L31

Colonel de Lisle.

Pte. Helliwell.

Acting R. S. M. Allen,

T/IiH/ /'n//'.-Sergl. Jeffrey,

Pte. Shurmer-

0. co

A MONTHLY CHRONICLE OF-THE ROYAL D'RAGOONS.

liouiuloopios of Volume II. 190$. can be had on application. l’l'im‘. Rs. 5 (tn-mm) per copy.

C. C

Copies sent,

Oversight regretted.

ROLEY. -Still at Hibernian Selma], we believe. ' EAGLm wCannot say. Might be “ Nicker“ (Nicholas). “' Niki” or ‘ Mickey." . F. L. ti—Pleased to get your interesting letter. Bave conveyed your messages All send regards,

MONTHLY NOT‘E‘S. , Last month we prefaced these notes with a growl about the daily increasing heat and dust and other unpleasantnesses normally inseparable from the month of April. Before, the paper was published, however, an extra

ordinary thing happened. Rain felle‘ﬁrst a sprinkle, then a shOwer, later a storm, and 1i~ 11ally a deluge. In all it rained daily, with few intervals, for twelve days, the local fall being 7 inches. In the memdry of the oldest. inhabitant (as the journalists have it), no such rainfall had before occurred at this time of the

THE

EAGLE THE

year. Occasionally there have been one or two showersﬂcalled mango rains—but never

anything like the regular monsoon period we have just experienced. The violence of the storms did considerable damage to crops, but the drop in the temperature and the absence of dust have been very welcome to us all here. It is wonderful how quickly

nature responds to a refreshing rainfall. The grey look of the country has given place to a mass of varied greens—grass is everywhere, trees are putting forth new shoots, and gare dens have awakened to a life of gorgeous colour. The rain ceased on the 27th ultimo,

almost as suddenly as it came, and the heat, is gradually re aSserting itself. So far, however, itis by no means discomforting, and the nights are quite pleasant.

There is, of course, very little going on

at headquarters at this period of the year. A Regimental field-day, every Wednesday, is the only excitement we have, although good work is being got through at Riding School, where scores of young horses and recruits assemble daily. In addition there is an ofiicers’ ride. which includes several officers of the Highland Light Infantry. whilst fifty non-commissioned officers and men of the same Battalion are undergoinga refresher course in Mounted Infantry work under our instructors. The Scouts have been out for several instructional rides, and “ D”aiid “C”

Squadrons have commenced their annual musketry course. For the rest we are simply keeping things going, until the next cold weather comes round, which will be the signal for our departure from Lucknow.

On April 9th, a party of Scouts under Serv geant Miller proceeded to Rae-Bai'eli by road, where

they were

joined by

Major Wood,

Major McNeile, Mr. Charrington and Mr. FitzGerald.

Their object was

to ﬁnd suitable

grouudfor cavalry manoeuvres next Decem-

ber.

EAGLE

The expedition was entirely success-

ful, and no difﬁculty was found in selecting a suitable area. Two days were spent by the officers in pig—sticking along the Ganges, but pig proved scarce, and the country generally almost unrideable. The total bag was only one pig.

onlyfi tiger and 3 panther, i'and the whole shoot was spoilt by the rain. ‘1 Captain Sandbach, shooting from Naini Ta] along with Mr. Radice, also suffered from inclement weather, getting only one panther. Colonel de Lisle, who leaves for home early

Pig-sticking has lured several parties away

from Lucknow during the past month.

Atkinson had four days with a party at Meerut, when the irecord bag of thirtyﬁve

pig was secured.

Major Wood and Captain

Lambert spent ten days searching for pig along the south bank of the Sarda. Although good country was found, pig were not numerous and only nine fell to their spears. The Regiment has also been indebted to the Cawnpore Tent Club for some pig-sticking. This club of late years has had

very poor sport, but now under the auspices of a keen Commissioner it is enjoying a measure of success, and itiis pOSSlble that in

the next few years it Will recover the ﬁne reputation it held some ﬁfteen years ago.

On April 16th and 17th, Captain Lambert and Mr. Atkinson got ﬁve pig with a party of ﬁve spears But since then others who have

gone to Cawnpore have had somewhat poorer sport, and only 3 pig were killed.

this year Mr. Cosens is the only oﬁicer so far who is taking his general leave shooting. Our last news of him is from Southern liidia

where he has enjoyed excellent Sport.

One

tiger, 2 panther, and 2 ﬁne cheetal have already fallen to his rifle in the district where Captain Grant and Mr. Turner shot last year, and we learn heis now proceeding to Tra-

vancore to shoot an elephant and more tiger. Mr. Houstoun, shooting with Sir John Hewett’s party in the Terai, bagged one good tiger, measuring 9 feet 6 inches. Captain Tom kinson was also out with the party for a. few days, but had no luck. The total bag was

in June, is at present spending ten days' leave in Simla and Landour. Major McNeile has left for home on ninety days' leave. Mr. Irwin is still at Kasauli on the signalling course. Mr. Houstoun is under. going the course at the School of Musketry. Pachmarhi, a hill station in the Central Provinces, and Mr. AtkinsonisdoingaSupply and Transport course here at Lucknow, A correspondent writes from home to say

that Captain Godman won the Grand Military Handicap Steeplechase at Sandown Park, on the second day of the Grand Military meeting with his horse Kenilworth, who started at iOOWS. Captain Godman rode an exceedingly well-judged

race, and

won from a ﬁeld of

eight by threequarters ofalength.

sentatives to form a companion picture. Polo this year has been carried on under more favourable circumstances than usual. The heavy fall of rain is responsible for a vastly improved ground, and not improbably

play will be continued right on to the break of the monsoon. A local handicap American tournament was started on 26th ultimo, with six teams competing, one of which included Messrs. FitzGerald, Edwardes, and Rube It was eventually won by the Highland Light Infantry. We mentionedin our last number that we intended to dispose of the Regimental pack of hounds. They have now been presented to the Highland Light Infantry, who will run them on similar lines to those adopted in the Regiment. We understand Major Ronaldson is to carry the horn. We wish them good luck and good sport.

A few

days previous Captain Godman also was ﬁrst in the inter—Regimental race Eastern Mounted Brigade meeting, on which occasion he team representing the Sussex

years we should be stationed together again, lt would, we think, be interesting to havea photograph taken of three present-day repre-

at the South P0lllht0~PUint was one of the Yenmanry.

The rank and ﬁle have been permitted, as during last summer, to indulge in the game of polo, using selected troop horses, and a start was made a few days ago under the Adjutant who acts as coach. Tne exercise is excellent for both men and horses, and

The presence in Lucknow of the Highland

it is hoped the Regiment will be able to turn

Light Infantry and the King’s Own Regi— ment reminds us of an old picture which hangs in the Oﬁicers" Mess. It represents

outafair non commissioned oﬁicers’team by the time it arrives in Mutti-a. where there will be opportunities for the best players to make up ofﬁcers’ teams for practice games.

three men in uniform—rm the left a Sergeant of the H. L I., in the centre a “Dragoon of the lst Regiment or Royals,“ and on the right " a. grenadier of the 4th or King‘s Own Regiment of Foot." The uniforms arethose worn at the time of the Peninsular War, and the date of the group is supposed to be about 1813. We cannot say where the Regiment

was quartered at that time, but it is evident the three regiments were together, and it is noteworthy that after nearly one hundred

The band still continue to the fore in the matter of entertainment, and have given two

enjoyable open-air dances, although the former was curtailed owing to a sudden rainstorm. All the members take a keen interest in these functions and, by dint of much hard work and attention to detail, succeed in

providing really excellent evenings. It is to be hoped the merry little dances Will continue throughout the summer.

future generations of Royals, to place on record anything of regimental interest. Future compilers of Regimental history, and writers

of biographies, should have cause to be grate» ful to The Eagle and to the many who so kindly contribute to its pages. But there are still many, surely, who could, but do not!

Captain Lord Charles Fitzmaurice has been appointed Equerry to H. R. H. The Prince of Wales. four Captain York, who left the Regiment

years ago and held the post of Adjutant of the Leicestershire Yeomanry, has joined the Yorkshire Hussars.

Since the news contained in the note above Cosens has was received, we learn that Mr. shot two more tigers and an enormous hisoH

in Travancore, If no news is good news, we may take it that all‘is well with our detachment at

Manora.

«We received a letter from a detachment correspondent shortly after the party arrived at their destination. This told us of their ﬁrst few days in camp, recorded one football match in which the detachment. beat the Diocesan School 8—0, and mentioned'that the men were looking to the Naini Tal‘branch

40f: the Y.‘ M. C: A. for ‘much J‘spoirt and re—

The Corporals of the Regiment gave a Very enjoyable (U. fresco Quadrille party on the 8th instant Dancing took place on the tennis» court outside their mess, and lasted lfrorn 9-45

P M. until nearly 8 A M perfect

order,

the

The ‘ lloor ' was in

music supplied

the

Regimentalband was. as usual. of the best quality. and the night being cool and brilliant with moonlight, nothing further could be desired. Corporal Wyatt, as M. C , and the dance committee worked well to secure the comfort of the many guests of the Corporals, who seemed to thoroughly enjoy what is con sidered to be the most successful dance yet held by the members of the Corporals' Mess. The results of the “Best Shot in Regiment” competition, which were unavoidably omitted from our last number, are given be low. All members of the Sergeants” Mess are allowed to shoot in the “ Best Sergeant ” event, and in the “Best Corporals and Privates ” the four best shots of this class in each squadron compete. The conditions are: Bisley Targets—e200, 500 and €00 yards 5 rounds at each distance. The struggle for 1st and 2nd between Sergeants Allchin and Newton was very keen and interesting. Cor poral Hughes won for the second time, he having been successfulin last year. Ptes. Perkins and Hall tied for 3rd place. The scores were as folioWS :— Serf/cunts. lst. Sergeant Allcliin .. 2nd. “ Newton .. 3rd. “ Reynolds ..

., .. ..

l35points. hi “ 56

.. ..

liﬁpoints. 55 58

Corporal; (uni. PrirntcS. lst. Corporal Hughes 2nd. Bandsman Williams

3rd, Pthr-rltins undl’te,‘

.. ..

515

sequent services to the present time. By General C. P. de Ainslie.

Between Tarbes and Toulouse the brigade coming up with the French at St, Gaudin, Major-General Fame made a charge with the 12th Light Dragoons, supported by the 3rd Dragoon Guards, the Royals being about a mile in the rear, which was well conducted, and resulted in the capture of about eighty men and horses. The regiment then was posted at the village of Portel, on the Gai'onne, and about three leagues from Toulouse, the British ved ettes being posted in a line parallel to those of the French and within a few yards of them. On the 23rd of March the British army invested Toulouse, butit was not until the 10th of April that the action which decided the surrender of the city took place, and during this interval, the regiment had pretty severe though monotonous duty at their post at Portel, but at length every preparation being completed, the army crossed the Garonne

below Grenade, seven miles from Toulouse On the 9th and 10th of April, Hill ‘s division and Fane’s brigade of cavalry remainingin their usual position, so that the part taken by them in the battle was not more active than on the days preceding, but on the morning of the lith, Hill’s division entering Toulouse at 8 o'clock, Fane’s brigade ﬁled over the great bridge and marched straight through the. city amidst apparent enthusiasm for the Bourbons and the British army. Marshal Soult retiring by Villefranche and Carcassonne to Castelnaudary, the brigade without halting, continued toa small village on the Canal de Languedoc which that night it was unable to cross. It must be noted that this day’s march'had been one of peculiar fatigue and suffering, owing to the extreme violence of the wind and the clouds of dust, Which very

previous, and the restoration of the

Bourbon

dynasty. The Regiment now went into quar— ters in the village of Gardouche, near Villei'ranche, with which may be said to have end—

;3 the military operations of the Peninsular ar, in Villefranche, to which town the regiment moved, and which they had to the mselves, the Royals spent an extremely pleasant time everything being abundant and

good.

the 24th of May the headquarters moved to Montguiscard, and there arrangements were made for the proposed march of the Royal Dragomis with the rest of the cavalry throuoh France to Calais, there to embark for Engladd. On the lstof June the sick and the ineffective men, live officers, and the heavy baggage were sent by canal to Toulouse, and thhnce to Bordeaux, there to embark for England. and 86 horses considered unﬁt, having been disposed at Toulouse, on the 3rd of the month. began the long march to Calais, which termin~

ating on the 17th of July, the Regiment embarked the day following. and landed at Df)VeI‘ on the 19th, after an arduous and exemplary

service on the continent of four years and eleven months. The Royal Dragoons landed of the following strength :—

TROOP.

HORSES

many old Royals among our readers to follow the example so generously set by Colonel Tomkinson, and give presentday Royals the beneﬁt of their reminiscences. It must not be lost sight of that The Eagle, like Tennyson’s brook, will go on for ever, and further, that whatever appears in its pages becomes a permanent record. We, therefore, owe it to

ing an account of its formation in the reign of King Charles the Second, and of its sub-

lliscni harluul Sit-k lahscntl

Rank and l ilo

constitute no

We would again appeal to the

0f the First or the Royal Regiment of Dragoons, contain-

much distressed the column. The following day the Royals passed the canal and quartered in a village near Villefranche, whither came to them the news of the abdication of the Emperor Napoleon on the 4th of April

mean record.

HISTORICAL RECORD

( 3n rtcr—m u s

the article will agree, these

Since

we have had no news, but now that the ﬁne weather has setiu, and the men there have settled down comfortably in camp, we shall expect to hear fully each month of their doings, which we hope to publish, as formerly, under " Naiui Tal Letter."

69i'

()iilcors.

old Royals on the Turf, and as all who read

creation during the present summer

EAGLE

.Again our thanks, and the thanks of all our readers, are due to Colonel Tomkinson for a second contribution under the heading “Sporting Reminiscences.” This time Colonel Tomkinson deals with the doings of

T- H E.

EAGLE

H ".1ch

THE

Absent with and without leave Prisoners of wait

.i 3'?

so 329 i

[This concludes Chapter IV. and the Peninsular Cam».

paign. Chapter V. dealing with the Regiment’sldoings in the Battle of Waterloo and the events which led up to it will commence in our next number eEdirnrJ

THE

EAGLE

SOUTH AFRICAN LETTERS.

T H E

We arrived at Lake Crissie on the 18th and were informed that Botha, Slnuts, and twenty Boers slept there the previous night.

HOLNEK, 'I‘RA NSVAAL, 28th May, 1891. DEAR M, My last letter written

from

Biinkwater

Drift on the Steelpoort River was hardly dis» patched when we were again in the saddle to make a night march back to Roos Seuekal. Leaving at 10-15 P.M., we arrived at daybreak

and surprised a party of Boers with

six

wagons. In the skirmish two of the enemy were killed and twelve were taken prisoners, the wagons and oxen also falling into our

hands. Resuming our marCh we arrived at Middelburg on the 6th without incident, and reﬁtted On the 12th we moved out and bivouacked at Rockdale, ready to start another trek to-

wards Swaziland.

Kitchener’s column was

on our left ﬂank and we both marched on the 13th. During the day we heard guns in Kitchener's direction, and our advanced guard was ﬁred on by snipers. The country through which we were marching was rolling

grass plains—khaki-coloured, with patches of black marking the track of veldt ﬁres. The Boers hung round our ﬂanks, front and rear —like the poor they were always with us—-

On the 2lst we left the open country and got amongst rocky kopjes, our advanced guard was ﬁred on and the guns came into action. Small parties of Boers could be seen galloping out of the way of the shells. We then moved on and camped at Bolnek : on the following day “ A " Squadron escorted a con» voy and some Boer families back to Kitchener's column, my troop being advanced guard. On approaching their position we were ﬁred on by their picquets and narrowly missed being shelled. Halting the advanced guard, I arrived on top of the hill at the same time as two guns galloped into position and unlimbered. A Boer commando was reported in the vicinity, and we were mistaken for them, Next day we were escorted part of the way back by the Imperial Light Horse and two guns. On arrival at l-lolnek, found that the regiment had gone on, but that we were to stay and hold the Nek, so we settled down and made ourselves as comfortable as pos. sible, one or two troops went out exploring daily amongst the rocky gorges and ravines

in the neighbourhood and found many things hidden away, such as and ponies.

wagons, clothes, tools

On Whit-Sunday, 26th May, we captured

dusk. On the 17th being on advanced guard and

six Boers, twenty horses, and one hundred and thirty-ﬁve head of cattle, That same night a lot more cattle came in through the outposts, fortunately it was light enough to distinguish that they were cattle cr some of them would have got hurt, to say nothing

sitting on a hill during a “ halt,” we could see the dust of Kitchener’s column far away to the north, and presently made out their right

ﬂanking patrols thrown out very wide moving along abreast of our rear guard Whilst watching them we were surprised to seea couple of small white clouds suddenly ap

in the mornings.

To get warmth and space

about alarming the camp. Boers are reported to havealaager near here on kopjes t0 the south-east, but we re-

pear over their heads and scatter the patrol

connoitred in that direction to-day and saw

in all directions, whilst “ boom boom " fell on our cars from the rear. Our rear guard was shelling them ! Of course these mistakes will happen on service; heard subsequently ﬁve of their horses were killed !

nothing, two Boers came in this evening under white ﬂag, one severely wounded, shot

through the body and had to be lifted off his pony. There are two guns here and a detachment

SPORTING REMINISCENCES. No. 2. In a previous article (The Eagle of March) I dealt with the “Chase" and, in connection therewith, told of the many former members of the Royals who had ofﬁciated as Masters of Hounds in their respective countries and so successfully presided over the hunting interest in these In this second sketch under the above heading, l thinkit may be of interest to the present members of the

Regiment

recall some of the doings of their predecessors on the “Turf," they having achieved many notable successes in the steeplechasing World in former days, especially in the sixties

and eighties.

Between the years 1863 and

1870 the late a aptain Park Yates and Colone’ Ainslie—in England and [reland respectively —won many races with their horses, the record of the lasmnamed being, indeed, quite an

extraordinarily successful one. In the later decade Colonel Burn-Murdoch became known as a prominent performer between the Flags and acrOss country, and established for himself and his Regiment a brilliant record as an owner and rider, both in England and Ire-

we have burrowed the ground under our blanket shelters, some of the men living in what are practically caves. For-light we make candles of mutton fat, with a wick of cotton

from dawn to

and sniping went on daily

of one hundred men of the Scots Guards, be‘ sides us, to keep the road open to the plains and prevent the column being cut off.«the country is verywild and rocky, the hills covered with immense boulders and intersected with deep canyons or gorges. We found several families living deep down amongst the rocks in caves They had plenty of food and clothing, but had evidently been so stulfed up with yarns about the British that they quite expected to be killed on the spot! We have a number of Boer families in laager within our lines waiting to be sent down—the youngsters are running about shouting and playing, making this camp amongst the grim mountains sound like an English village. Amongst these families there is an English par-son and his family who have been on some mission amongst the Kafﬁrs. I had a chat with him and gave the children a tin of jam 1 Funny world this; wonder, what the family of a person at home would have said on receipt of a tin of stoneless plum? Turned up their reverend noses I expect ! The weather is splendid, but the nights are very cold, the ground being white with frost

E A (3r L E

usually obtained from the tailof a shirt.

To-

land. In compiling the following details of the chief events won by members of my old corps, l have received much kind assistance from Colonel Morton, who served in the Regiment with all the above-mentioned, and I am in-

bacco is very scarce, andthe men are smoking

all sorts of substitutes, including dried tea leaves and various herbs, the best results be-

ingobtained from one called “silver leaf." We hear that fourteen Boers were taken prisoners by the Regiment near Steynsdorp, you will ﬁnd thelatter place on the map, close to the Swaziland border and that will give you a rough idea of where we are at present. But you had better look soon as the map of South Africa is by way of undergoing alterations at present ! Yours,

OL.-OL.

debted to him for his most painstaking re» searches on my behalf, these having even taken him to the British Museum in pursuit of information only to be found in the copies of Bell's Life in. London there ﬁled !~Another old Royal, Colonel Arthur Mesham, supples me with an interesting account of Colonel (then Major) Ainslie’s great treble

eventat Punchestown in 1869 and of the wager won on this, and l have given the narrative sent to me by Captain Mesham in his own words.

Captain Park Yates’s ﬁrst notable success

‘72

.THE

EAGLE THE

was in 18.63, when he won the Grand Military Gold Cup with his horse Riileman, ridA

Punchcstrumt—1v1pril, 1868. RACE.

and the Conyngham Cup as well? ’ Honsn.

Riimn.

den by Captain Riddell of the 16th Lancers who was one of the most ﬁnished horsemen and best gentlemen riders of the day. Captain Riddell isliving, and, happily, hunting regularly still in Northamptonshire, and from him I have received several details of races ridden

and won for Captain Park Yates. and I quote his letter in respect to these accordingly: “Riﬂeman,”he says, “was Yates‘s best horse. I won, Ithink, three or four times on him, his best race being the Grand Military Gold Cup in 1863, when we beat Jealousy, with Machell up, after that mare had won the

Liverpool Grand National. They laid 6 to 4 on Jealousy and 8 to 1 against Rifleman, horses ran in the

Weight

race.

Military the

and 18

lrish Grand Military. J nryinan Light Weight Grand Military .. .Inryman

Military Steeplechase.

Capt. Hutton

lllancns;

Mr. Cotton

Punches-town ﬁdm‘il, 186E). Convnghani Cup ., Wild Fox .. Irish Grand Military .. Wild li‘ox .. Light Weight llrand Military .. Glancus ..

Capt. Harford. Capt. llariord . Capt. Hariord.

Milieu—April, 1809. Navan Cup

.. (lurynian

Mr. McDonongh

.. Oakstick .. Juryman

.. ..

Capt. Hutton. Hyland.

Brzldrqﬂc—Am‘il. 1860. Military Plate Spencer Cup Rugby—April, 1569.

I won the Light

following

day

with

Grand Military Cup

liold .. Jnrymun

LOUUL Hunt.~.lluy, 1869.

victory on several occasions, and I won Sir

Cnnynghain Cup

Humphry de rI‘rafford's Gold Cup, given by him to be won three times by the same sol-

dier, but with what horses (of Park Yates’s) Ido not remember. Havelock, however, them.

Capt. Hutton.

Neil‘bridpr— February, 1809.

Havelock, another of Yates’s horses, and the same race in 1864 with Riﬂeman. In this and following years I rode Havelock and another horse of Yates‘s, Peeping Tom, to

was one of

Riﬂeman

should

have

WelterSiccplcchasc .. Oakstick

‘ ,. Capt. l’ritchard

.. Mr. McDonough

PunchcsioirneApril, 1570 .. Chasscnr

.. Capt. Hari'ord

Let Colonel Mesham tell the history of the wager won by Major Ainslie, when for the second year in succession he carried off both the Military Races at Punchestown and also won the Conyngham Cup there. “It was,"

been a great horse, but he would not always

he writes, “ one eveningin Januaryor Febru-

try and when backed at Hoylakes he ﬁrst

ary, 1869 that General Little and Tommy Gonner, 17th Lancers, dined at our Mess at Island Bridge Barracks in Dublin. I was not present on the occasion, but next day Major Ainslie came to me and said, ‘ I made a domn'd fool of myselflast night.’ He spoke with a strong Scotch accent, going on to say that General Little had remarked~in reference to the fact of his having won both the Military Races the year previous—that the Stewards would take care he did not do so again. Harry Dixon (the Paymaster of the Royals) joined in and with the three of them chaffing ‘Jock' Ainslie they got his temper up. He said, ‘ You know I never bet, but what will you lay me that I don’t win the two Militaries again

bolted and then fell from sheer temper.”

Cap-

tain Park Yates was again successful at Aintree in 1866, his horse Bandy Coote

winning the Light Weight Grand'Military there, Captain Ricardo riding, Captain Riddell having missed his train on the way to the meeting. In 1867, Major Ainslie commenced a series

of wins with Sorceress at» Aintree, when he carried off the Grand Military Hurdle Race, and the following year began the astonishing sequence of successes in Ire-

land, which are still well remembered in that country, appended :

list of these may be here

General

Little replied—‘ 15 sovs. to 1. ' ‘Mak e it tenners,’ said ‘Jock,’ ‘Hundreds,’ said Tom my Gonnerand Dixon,and Ainslie repli ed, ‘Done!’

He ought, of course, to have got at least 60 to llaid him, but, as be told me, ‘I was very angry and I knew nothing of betting.‘ Then Ainslie asked me what he should do and on my enquiring what horse hehad, he repli ed ‘ only Juryman,’ so I advised him to employ his touts to ﬁnd him some other good ones. In the end he bought three, Oakstick, Glaucus and Wild Fox. Before Punchestown, the three above-named ofﬁcers, who had shared the bet between them, got uneasy and wanted to hedg e a bit. Ainslie told me of this and [advised him to stick to the bet, as he could only lose his hundred and he ought to have had much longer odds. His horse, Wild Fox, won the Conyngham Cup and the Irish Grand Military at the meeting, thus crediting him with two out of the three races on which the wager depended. and there was tremendous excitement over the last of the contests,

the Light

Weight (-‘rrand Military, Both Oakstick and Glaucus were engaged in this and Ainslie told me that Oakstick was the best of the two. Hutton was riding the horse and he fell at a stone wall at the back of the Stand, a fence long done away with now. A shoutand agroan went up not to be forgotten. I was standing

by Ainslie and he said, done ’

‘lt's all up, l’m

lremarked, “You still have Glaucus,’

and he replied, ‘He’s no use.’ Captain Harford, however. came on with Glaucus and

won by a length, so Ainslie got his £1,500. He sold the horse then and there for £650, and he never, I believe, won another race. With Remedy in addition to his other horses Ainslie

one year won eleven races out of twelve and he would not have lost the twelfth had not his jockey gone the wrong side ofia post, This, I think, was in 1869. When in com~ mand of the Rediment subsequently Colonel Ainslie took inﬁnite pains over the purchaSing of remounts for us and he was an admir.

EAGLE

able judge of a Troop Horse and mounted the Royals in a way that left nothing to be desired. He died at York when in command of the Regiment in 1876. Colonel Burn Murdoch opened his winning account in 1882, having joined the Regiment three years previously. He won his ﬁrst race on his horse M. D.~ the Sligo Hunt Cup, and at the same meeting carried off a big Handicap on Miss Gore Booth’s Lisadell. In 1884 he won the Grand Military Gold Cup on Lava, the property of Major 'I‘idswell of the Regiment, whose horse, Hominy, a Very good one, had been beaten a head for the same race the year previous, ridden by the Hon’ble H. White, Bu: n Murdoch having broken his ribs hunting and being unable to take the mount as was intended. He went to the Soudan in the autumn of 1884y returning to Dundalk the next year, and

won four

races at the Regimental Meeting in 1886 and a like number at the Louth Hunt open one In 1888 he won the Irish Grand National at Fairy House on Firewater and the Military with Bagman, the former of these by a. short head, the horse having started at 15 to 1. This, Colonel Burn Murdoch considers to be the best race he ever rode. With Chieftain he was successful in the Louth Hunt Cup and several other races This was the horse from which he had his terrible fall in 1898. He rode him all through the South African war and had him shot when he came home in 1906 from the Cape. He carried off the G rand Military Gold Cup another year on Midshipmite, the property of Captain Powell, R. A, and at diﬁerent times rode many winners in England for various owners. When with the Regiment at

Aldershot in 188T and 1888, and subsequently in the Staff College (where he was master of the Drag) Colonel Burn Murdoch was successful in quite an unprecedented number of pointto-point races and, to the best of my recollection, won 5 off the reel in a fortnight with his own horses, these races including that of the Royals, Aldershot Heavy and Light Weight

THE

7-1

the and Staff Colleges. He also twice won Lady with ﬁrst Race. nt to-Poi Meath Pointhis Winchester's Wings, and secondly, with own mare, Verdict. menBefore concluding this article, 1 think match ng sporti the of made be d tion shoul olobetween Colonel Russell and LieutenantAC End-in and l Colone nel Maclean —the then the at oif run nd ent—a Regim the Command of in 1587. 22$ Regimental Races at Aldershot In a scene up. miles over the course, owners defeat“Mac” t gallan the of much excitement ing round ” ed his commander and won, “look

i cannot recall a by half-a-dozen lengths. two seniors of the similar encounter between may stand, match the think I any corps, and Regiment l old the for d recor a as therefore,

SHIKAR. parties News continues to come in from our very excit. ing Noth nces. Provi al Centr the in sport is being to chronicle, although good one sam.uzd tm chee few ing had, so fara t “Jamwhils guns, their to n falle ng bhur havi fitrange er. my" has bagged another panth in that afloat are urs and conflicting rumo , half tiger half l, anima d weir a district of the into r terro panther, which is striking hope us Let s. hearts of the native inhabitant it falls to one of our guns. is good. Two Of the Lucknow district news ng round movi or three herds of nuck are several and Road7 r Bakas on the Sultanpu around ng aski the for had be to fine heads are line Sandila on the Bareilly on" reports Our own particular " lzaak Walt So big are pur. Lalit in enormous catches

they (the

ﬁsh, not the

reports)

that the

, abandoned gun party has, for the time being for rod. again for bottom The River Goomti is right would like a day, I ﬁshing, and for those who

e the Watercan recommend the water abOV nd the Clock beyo on Stati Works Pumping taken Tower.

Some

ﬁne

rohu

have

been

’1‘ HE

EAGLE there lately, and the game old seem! has been seen rolling, waitingr fur a live bait or slow

spoon. SHIKAREUI.

“QUEEN VICTORIA’S KEYS.” it is usually in the out of-the-way country parts of Englandﬂthose little green spots that stand well off the high road. and where the motor car is still aterror unknown—that ,

the sentimentalist in search of the picturesque generally expects to find those quaint customs, and odd ceremonials, still surviving, that have been handed down through the centuries, and

which are interesting, as a rule, to all save the very inatter-of—l’act person, either by reason of their antiquity or owing to the his. torical or other assoications attaching to . their origin. amid too, cities larger But in many of our that ere atmosph an in and ment an environ one would think particularly fatal to the fostering of sentimental regard for, or pet" petuation of these time-worn relics of the past, there still flourish many quaint old-world customs that are hardly

k uown to exist, save

to the community in whose midst they prevail Itis not surprising, therefore, that of the thousands who come from all parts of the World to visit the 'l‘ower of London every year, a probably not half-zi-dozen are aware that tym formali very quaint and interesting little a way— quitcan impressive little ceremony in

takes place within the walls of this massive when Norman Keep every night at ten o'clock, Acclosed. are the great gates of the fortress this nightcordingly, the following account of years ago, twelve some ed witness as scene, ly

nothing may be of interest to those who know of it. white It was a November evening and a thin, settling haze had floated up the river, and, Tower in a over its banks, had enveloped the which the through white shroud of ghostly

silver light of the moon gleamed ﬁtfully in soft, subdued radiance. At the Traitor's Gate, which commanded a view of the great entrance, the silence was tense and awesome.

The very air seemed stilled by the associations of the place with the doomed. Suddenly. the clock that had called so many from their cells to the scaffold, began to chime out the hour of ten, and before the echoes had died away, ajingle of keys was heard. The high ponderous wings of the great gateway were swung to, and with much noise, the rusty lock shot its bolt. Then there stepped back from the gates a figure, which, in the misty gloom of the night, looked as if it had stolen from some’l’udor vault. In one hand the figure carried a bunch of huge clanging keys and in the other a lanthorn, that from its shape and the faint, weird light it emitted, might have once shed its rays on the tented field of Crecy, or brightened the night hours of the long tale of the ’l‘ower's doomed. The figure in the strange Elizabethan dress was that of the Yeoman Warder whose duty it was to lock the gate at 10 PM. This office completed, he then took his place between two guardstnen carryingr rifles with fixed bayonets, who, with a corporal, were awaiting him.

The little party, at the word

of command from the latter, now stepped off, marching down the wide walk that led past theTraitor‘s Gate and turning through the archway that led by the Bloody Tower. Here they were challenged by a sentry, who cried from the shadows, “Halt,

who goes there? "

The response was immediate—" Queen Victoria’s Keys," culled out the Yeoman

E A G L E their identity : and he, on learning that they were “Queen Victoria‘s Keys, “' at once cried, “Guard, turn out ! " The little party had already halted and were now facing the Guard as it rapidly turned out and formed up before the four figures, whose presence at such an unseemly hour had caused such a commotion in their midst. There was a momentary pause during which the Orderly Officer hurriedly came on the scene. Upon the letters arrival, the sentry again demanded to know from the four, "Who goes there?” The self‘same reply was vouchsafed— “Queen Victoria’s Keys," and after uttering it the Warder stepped forward. Thereupon, the sentry in stentorian tone commanded, “Surrender Queen Victoria’s Keys!“ and simultaneously the Orderly Officer advanced to the Yeoman Warder, who handed him a bunch of massive jangling keys. Having thus rid himself of his heavy re‘ sponsibility, the Yeoman Warder now raised his round velvet hat and cried in a loud voice, “ God save the Queen," upon which the Guard at once presented arms and responded in basso profunflo tones, "’ Amen! "' A moment more and the ceremony was complete. The Guard had dismissed and all the chief actors in the little drama had disappeared. only to reappear on the scene again the following night and repeat it as it has been repeated through the centuries. Precisely when this quaint ceremony origin» ated, it is hard to find any reliable I‘E‘C’ll'd, Lug it probably dates, in its present form. from

that were

the reign of Charles II. when a dastardly at-

in keeping with the neighbourhood of his surroundings " Pass, Queen Victoria's Keys, all's well."

tempt was inade by the notorious Colonel Blood to steal the Crown Jewels.

returned the sentry, turning to face the dauntless four as they continued their way in the

that from 10?.A1. till midnight. people

Warder, in low scpulchral tones.

direction of the main Guard Room. Arriving here, they were again called upon

by the second sentinel to halt and explain

In conclusion, it might

be as well to add, enter-

ingor leaving the Tower do so through ;i small wicket gate that is inset In a leaf of the larger one. After midnight. however, access cannot be gained to the Tower by any one. save

the

N. O‘B.

SPORTS. The following two hockey matches and one cricket match are the only items under this

heading reported during the past month. We give the former games in detail as reported:— ROYAL DRAGOONS vs. BARABANKI Playrd at Barabanki on Monday, 26th April, 1909 The ground was in good condition and very fast. We opened in fine style, pressing hard for the first three minutes, when a centre by Fisher ended in Vanson scoring our first

goal.

Barabanki soon responded and later

added another. Our defence seemed all at sea against their clever forwards, and our goal was attacked many times in this half. Before half-time Barabanki added another

goal.

Half-time score—Royals l, Barabanki

3, On resuming, play was mostly in our half, the Barabanki forwards, playing good sound

hockey, simply ran round our defence. Two more goals were added by them in quick sucA cession. Eight minutes from the close our forwards pulled themselves together and added aneat goal by Vanson from a ﬁnelyjudged pass from the right wing; almost immediately after, Holt took the ball on the “25” and, dodging the backs, dribbled into goal. No other scoring resulted and the game ended with the scores—Barabanki 5, Royals 3. The game was good throughout, but the defence were hardly up to their usual form.

BARABANKivs. ROYAL DRAGOONS Played on Regimental ground on. Thursday,

April 22nd, 1909 A very fast and exciting game all through, Our men played up splendidly in the ﬁrst

pressing up to the ﬁnish, several shots being saved by our opponents’ goal-keeper. A very fast and clean game, thus ended in a draw of two goals all.

"' A ” US. " (1." “ A " SQUADizoN. Pte. Underhill, b Edwards 5 b Edwards ._ Langley, run out .. 1 e Parks. b Ashworth .. Sergt. Pegg, c Edwards, b Fisher .. 13 b Ashworth ,. Ptc. Taylor. b Fisher 0 c Parks, b Ashworth .. .. 59 run out Sergt. Plumb, b Fisher Pte. Honeyinan. b Fisher .. 0 (3 Parks, b Fisher .. 2 run out Corpl. Spicer, run out Pte. Clarke, 4: Bunker, h Edwards .. 4 c d: h Edwards 1) Corporal M e a sure 5, Edwards .. 1 b Fisher ,, Pte. Holmes, h Edwards 4 b Edwards ., 0 “ Belcher, l) Edwards .. 3 cFitzGeruld, h Edwards 0 Bye: .. '7 Wides .. 1 Err/ms .. 11

Total

.. 50

T H E H C " SotiAniioN.

l’tn. Parks, h Langley “ lh'wing,l)(‘larlm

.. 3:7

~ 1“

Scrgt. Fisher, h Langley -~ Edwards, b Langley .. ~Lieut F. W. Wilson li‘itZGPTElltl, c Measures, '1

-- 13 ~ 18 Taylor ll

Sel'gt. Angus, c S; ‘0 Langley l‘te. Ashworth, h Taylor Hutchinson. h Langley Henderson, not out Johnson, D Taylor Sergt. Bunker, b Langley I'h't'i'us Total

..111

SERGEANTS’ MESS NOTES. The only social event of the month under review in connection with the mess is a tennis ‘at home' and dance which was held on the afternoon and evening of the 5th instant, Quite anumber of friends, civilian and military, responded to the invitations, resulting in an almostrecord gathering. Some excellent tennis was witnessed, and the pleasing surprise of several members who are not frequenters of the courts was occasioned by the really good play of our ladies, some of whom have improved wonderfully at this fascinating game. The dance commenced at 9 13.31., and lasted

until midnight,

when

some

enterprising

Total

”—1;

successful, all who could “ do things ” ap— pearing even anxious to contribute. Mr Parker, of Cawnpore, was a special favourite, his fine baritone voice being heard to advan-

tage in several songs of the "good old ” type. The “ evening" was brought to a close by several

more dances,

and the whole affair

was voted a success Our thanks are due to the entertainment com mittee. We could not rest long, with all the sporting

young blood in the mess, without breaking a lance with some team or other, so accordingly we threw down the gauntlet to the “ King's Own” Regiment

Sergeants’

Mess

and

EAGLE

hockey match was the result, which came off on our Regimental ground on the 24th ultimo. Both sides were strong and a good game ensued. The “ King's Own " started the scoring through a misunderstanding on the part of our backs, but Vanson equalised shortly afterwards. Our forwards were playing somewhat raggedly and not a few opportuni« ties were missed. Just before the interval the “ King’s" added a further point, giving tlnain the half-time lead of 2—7—1. ()n resuming, our men get into their stride and the attack was dashing and forceful. Nothing could

spirits organised animpromplu concert by way of giving variety to the proceedings. Like most impromptu affairs this was very

CRICKET.

In (I,

who alone are informed of the ‘pastord ’or ‘countersign ’ that ad mits the dweller witho ut the gates.

half and the combination of the forw ards was perfect. The ﬁrstgoal came 15 minutes from the start, a combined run ended in a pass from the right wing going to Whitting ham who netted with a hot shot. On resum ing, play was fairly even, both ends being visited in turn. Two good shots were splen didly saved by Callaghan and our backs were clear~ ing cleanly and stopping notafew ugly rushe s. After twenty minutes’ play Fisher, with an individual effort, ran clean through the oppos ing backs and netted from almost on the goalline. Halftime arrived with no further score, On resuming, our team at once pressed and forced two corners, which. however, prove d abortive. Our men had most of the play and were working hard. About mid-way throu gh this half acombined effort by the opposing forwards brought the ball into our circle and, owing to the backs fumbling our opponents reduced our lead. Very even play followed, and soon after their centreforward dashed through and scored a second goal, thus bringing the scores level. Both sides tried hard and our men were

H wy—ici—AH

Sovereign, the General Ofﬁcer Commanding the District, and the Lord Mayor of London

EAGLE

T H E

stop

them, and by the time

the whistle blew for time they had found the net ﬁve times Our goal was. however, once or twice in danger, but generaly the defence was eiual to the opposing attack. 'A good game thus ended in our favour by 513; goals to twr». Our points were obtained by Vanson (3), Bolt, Jeffrey, and Fisher.

We shall expect

great things of our hockey team The

vs.

annual

shooting

‘

match,

“ Ofﬁcers

Sergeants," was held on 15th

under.

iinfortunately,

most

instant-

unfavourable

conditions. The ﬁrst four men had hardly tireslttf their rounds before a violent duststorm stopped the proceedings for fully half an hour, and

even then a boisterous Wind

exploded all the wind-gauge theory of our marksmen. At 502) yards the last to tire could scarcely see the targets Under the circumstances Sergeant Newton’s score of thirty-two at

500" was

excellent,

whilst

Major Wood's

twenty nine was also creditable. The match ended in a win for the oificers

by 25’ points, their first victory. by the way. Both sides were without some of their best shots, noticeably Captain Hodgson and

S_Q.M S, Rapkin.

Refreshments were sup-

plied by the officers The scores were as fOIIOWs :— Captain Lambert .. :18 Lieutenant Rube .. o3 “ Atkinson .. 45 “ Edwardes .. - 44 “ Charrington .. 57 Major Wood .. 54

Captain Tomkinson _

Lieutenant Wilson FitzGerald

30 375

E A (1‘ L E

T H E

(the -agle.

l’ttw‘r‘rost to Nuini ’l‘al us sit-k trnnsler “ llussull do. lllingswortli do “ Holmes to l\';iiiii’l‘:1llorduty.

SERGEANTS. Sergeant Bunker ” Goddard “ Vanson “ Reynolds S QM S. Norton Sergeant Bence R.S.M. Allen Sergeant Newton

lv'urlutu/lt and Lertre.

-.llt-e.—t‘orpl. McCorunn' to Inintlonr t‘roni lst May, won. to Bllth .lnne, limo. . lit-tn-Corpl. Holl‘ tn Cuwnporu l'roni 1st May. libel), to 31st July. luou ‘, lu-u. C‘u‘pl. M tirl >\\' to llllllthlll from 13th May, lth'). to 30th .l llllt‘. Wot). ’l‘ptr. Parry to Lundnur from ﬂirt] A pril. 1min. tuttﬂnd May. ltlllil l’te. Shurmer to lnindour from lst Mary, lllllll, to 30th .lunu. W1». ‘. l‘te. Mort-m.- .. Lantlour i'rmn lsl May, llllill, to 30th June Hm . 1st 31:13" 15m” 10.30“! lwto, “wish-y 1.. l.nndunr l'runi

44 32

(it) 347

.lnnc. Hum.

occurrence, but Williams would appear to

-.—_ lr‘to. Chandler I... lx'zisutli ll‘Olll lst May. ltlntl, to. 30th June. lllllll. '. lv‘te. Hoylrs to Kasziuli from 151’ May, lilllil. to 30th June. 111m. ‘ . Mr. H :l\\'l\'lllS to linsunli from lst Mny. 12102», to until June. 1900. He. Lentv. to Kzisuull from lst May. low, to 1mm .J tine. ltll‘itl ', l‘te. Noll to Kusanli lroinlstMuy.llil‘u,103nm,1um._ 1900. Pte. Pearson to Kusuuli l'roni lst May. 190$]. to with .lilnu.l‘.10!l o. l‘te Hook to llilllllllll'frnnl run May. 152W. to Illst M my, low. Cowl. Huuhinnn granted one nionth'smtrnsion 01‘ leave lirnnzinnliunx.

putting,r up a further record by the enlist~ ment of his eldest son. Charles, who has just

donned the Royals' uniform.

If the young

“ Barney" develops into as tine a soldier as the old “ Barney," he will be a credit to the Regiment Several members are seeking,r the climatic and other delights of the hill stations, whilst the less fortunate are anticipating; the "delights” of prickly heat, which should shortly be the fashionable malady ! -‘ Snitcnm'r.“

REGIMENTAL GAZETTE. Promotions and Appointments.

. Sergt. Jell‘rey to tie S.\‘.3I.l~l.ll. ‘. Lt'e.-Sergt.(1’:dneyto he Sergeant. , Corp]. Williams to be Paid Leexb'eruwaiit Lee—Cowl. Hughman to ltO. Corporal. Tptr. Hewitt to be,Unpuid Lee—(Jtvrporul. Pte. Fitzwalter to he Unpaid Lee-Corporal . Ho. Lee to he Regimental Signaller. Tm its/M's. 3

ol:l-togimem, Ptv. Hampton from the King's Liverpo Jlorcx. 5.5 M. Greenland to Calcutta us Light Horse. ‘ 5.3M. Lawrence to Paehmarhi Musketry.

lite.

()nley l’llSllLll 1"“). l'te. l{l‘Sll‘y

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS.

EDITORIAL NOTICES.

CLAPHAM. —See page ‘26. February Eagle. Thanks for letter E. G. B.—General Havelock is buried at Alum

LucKNow. INDIA, JUNE. 1009.

pussrul

examination

Elvinentnry

b‘lzlmrz'iln N (H [HI/ll". [Iél'tllllII/III .. .. " n lmlul ‘ b’izlmrriln II I] nn I1 mm, 4V0n.-rnmmissiunrtl nﬂirrrn ' i . UInr ([lllMlll IllrlHlHl\ 0/ u I. malt) ‘ In Int/m

mr nnniun

Bagh. about three miles from our barracks. S. A. 0.4The Regiment was at Bloemhof, on the

.. _, .. Price [HI' why to nﬂr rs ., n+1» Prim prl' (mm In n0n-tmn/nlwionz«l (Iﬂl'r'r/w and nun. .. and ,q/mum [1,. Nani M NH Editor, r lnlrnnc in title (Il't piivns Snbrrri

0’0 77!! 130ml] “Par/0011s.

.lll ranillrzncm will or (lt’kllOIrledfMd i],

W1 (l/‘ln' pawl”. the ”turf Itlllllbl'l‘ Off/1r Impu- public/1 ro‘, ”Wendi/m on 1mm or Subscribers C/ltlllﬂillfl lluir (Idtlfcna notify 5/1,. 54”,”. 0." 1/” furlough. or lun'z’nn IIH' [Regiment Nil/711117 new (uh/rem. in Maul: and can he. llml ‘1 “my”! ””"lb' " "f [WU/l “’le N fll'r lapl on applirniinn. In r/n [villi/m;

lexuininaiian

Edmuitinn,

rl‘llr, Lax-Curpl Knight.:iwnrtled :lnd t-luss‘ W‘I‘tlllr‘hll‘ ol' l‘Jdtn-ulbn. W31}. [Aux-Corp]. Hnrnetty awarded ‘Zntl cl; .' t‘l‘l'lvllll‘iltt‘ of l‘Jllllt'llllllll. {Ht-l; ll\‘.';ll'l.lt‘tl L’id eluss ('(‘l‘llllt‘illﬂ ol Sill, ],p(g_-(‘tirpl. Educution. 331*. Inc-Cnrpl. Marlow awarded L’nd class t'rl't lirzlte of Education. l.ct'-.»Corpl. Ennis il\\"dl'Ll(‘l,l ’3nil class t-t-rtilinate 01' It’ll E lnention. Brown awarded ‘Pntl ttlnss rerlilitzttte ol 355"] Lug—Cowl Education. min. [AL-tailorpl. Mullis ll\\':|1'tll‘tl 32nl class certilitute ol Eiluvation. um, lr‘to. llt-ndcrson awarded ‘lnd rluss certiﬁcate of Ednration. ., l'te, llolm-s uwurdml 'Jnnl t‘luss ('t’l’mllCillU of Edncation. 01‘ 141d”. l"lt‘.. Row-rs uwnrtletl :Ent'l «*luss turriilnxnllration. ’my s‘t’nltlnvwod uwurtltul ‘.‘ntl l'l‘dSS rurlilirutv ol Education. I'rnxioux.

i.) l'

Pittman FOR Tun Enlron in W. S. Minsk. AT THE

Sl-l'n‘t. Mull); ui‘untrtl tu'lls‘lml 1‘) pence per (“ND 1' or We sir-rut. llurinunuruulvu pension 13 pence per diem , L. l'or lilo

on'. Ml;’.l‘ll'_)l)l$'l‘ PL‘JHJslnxu Elot‘slc, LL‘CKN

the Duke of Wellington came to lie in state there in 1852. The day the cofﬁn was re

do .m. ('ontrilntli/Ins s/zonlil run-ll. flu Io'vlilnr not lum' I/lnn. Nu fill; of

BRAINY .~- Moti {\‘lahal " means " pearl palace“

Elmnentury

Lee-Corpl. Bullion awarded L‘nvi class t-ertilieute ol‘

Adjutant.

IGNORAMUS.»The “Eagle.” captured by the Regi~ ment at Waterloo. was deposited in Chelsea Hospital. where it remained until the bodv of

moved to its resting-place in St. Paul’s. the “Eagle” mysteriously disappeared. in is

€(I<‘h mun/11. to «nun/‘9' plzblit'ation. in Hull month's issuz. passed

Vaal River. when peace was declared. YEOMAN.—Captain Burch is now with the East Riding of Yorkshire Yeomanry. of which corps Captain '1‘. C. Gurney (late Royals) is

.llt’. commitnirrliinnx illl(‘ll.tltli for publication in ” TIM liar/Zr ‘i should be written. on UIU‘ .x-z'n‘r oft/n Imprr Only. mldrrsxml in HM Elli/or. (lllll s/mulvl In (It'lfﬂlllllllllifli hy UH n'riIé/"s name and address, The Editor [rill not unrln'm/re- to In responxible for (my I‘dér/m’ .1152. nor lo return any ran/rilnztion unless specially (ﬁsh-H] to

Pushln

fi‘l-l

Instructor to Cale: ittlt to undergo L‘Ulll'rt‘

No. 6.

VoL. lll.

Snlmrripliunx Io “ Tlu [Joy/Zr“ or: ll.\'_/'ulloll'.s‘ :7

. l’tt-. Taylor to Lundonr from in May. 15W.» in :iuth June. llitlti. ‘, Pte. Cairns to [.andour from 1st May. ltllltl, trrilﬂth .lnne. iflll‘), ", l-‘te. Hutton to Inlndour from 3th ley..1!l(iii. tozﬁth July. 1002).

The conditions were—T shots at 200 and T at 500 yards. Bisley targets. Old Royals will be interested to learn that the latest “ Recruit ” to the Sergeants' Mess is No. 3039, “ Barney" Williams, who was pro moted Sergeant a few days ago. The promotion of so old a soldier is in itself a rare

A MONTHLY CHRONICLE OF THE ROYAL DRAGOONS. “ SPECTEMUR AGENDO.”

JIv-IIZIH'I'S. past and premzl. Ul‘l/ltil' friends (IN (1311/11!) vol/min. nitrate to 111.2 Editor any item ofnrn-x likely In In of interval [0 our rmdrrs. 1/. [ms Imn noticed parliculurly flint news of €.l‘-]]lH//h(]'.< i 'wartluilritn (Ireuf interest by present Royals. rlntl rue/1. rommn. nim/ions (ll'ul/lt’ Inmns of mlublix/«ino unvl maintaining [/1111 link Daptr. between past and prestnl. Ill/(it'll. is the primary 0};ij Qfﬂhf ’I'ltf Iz'rlitorfnrtlm' incite» renders [0 submit. to him any inqui. rim w/lirl/ In nun/liwlblelo unsnrn' by reason. (7fnurinylm-rss n;

limit will. 11.x- far as [Illsyiblt' (H,- (1H,"

[he It’miznrnful I'er'al‘LZS.

with under." .lnszrtrx In (‘mvvsponrluzlsﬁ‘ bylétftr lt‘Lllln senl.

ll'lw'l necessary. (I reply

Ratesfor.»l«lvn-(ismunlx can be ascu'iained on. application In

thought to have been the work of some ultrapatriotic Frenchman. But the one in Lucknow is probably not the one in question. There are scores of, so— called. pearl palace: in lndia. CREAG-AN-SCAIRBH. WMany thanks. We have

cut the other Corporal as you were slightly off the mark. He got a ' wigging ’ instead of a

D. S. M

HYDE PARK. —Thanks for articles. Will go in next number. R. A. R.—~Many thanks for a. bright article. We use it

MONTHLY NOTES.

the Editor. The following subscriptions to The Ear/l: have been received :-— Major-Pitt.

Mrs. Wilson FitzGeral J. Daniels. Esq.

-»

.t'

.. 1 0 5

.. 0 5 6

Rs. A. p. KATA

Sales

5 0 0

Sergeants’ Mess Bound copies of Volume II. 1908. can be had on applicm ion. ' Price, Rs. 5 (awe—SJ) per com'.

It. would appear likely that the present summer is going to prove the most pleasant, or rather the least unpleasant we have experienced in Lucknow. The eﬁect of the rain, of which we wrote last month,»was to produce a comparatively cool atmosphere during the greater part of May, and not until the last few days of the month did the heat become

THE EAGLE

THE,EAGLl;t‘

really trying. Then came a few sand‘storms, and later the wind veered round to the east, and on the 1st of the present month we were blessed with another rain-storm. Not much rain fell, but for several days the sky remain-

what more likely than he will succumb sooner than the man who has gradually inured himself.

ed overcast aud the temperature dropped con-

day or thereabouts,

siderably For a couple of days the sky cleared, and again came the clouds until now as these lines are being written, the rain is teem-

football, hookey, etc., at 4 P.‘.Vl., and cases of heat apoplexy are practically unknown. The native does not get sunstroke, because he is used to the sun. Then let us get used to it. It is easy enough for a soldier. It is said he can get used to anythingin quicker time than

ing down.

May they continue for a space l

Lucknow, socially, is of course at its worst Life isa somewhat dreary round, and if it were not that work claims us for a good part

Our men work in the open daily until midand they

turn out for

most people. And it cannot be denied that years ago about every second man who had

of the day, we should die of pure mum, Rid-

served in Indiahhad suffered some time or

ing School keeps ofii cers and men busy from (i to S A.M.. and stables and orderly-room occupy us from 9 o'clock or so until midday, Then there is nothing to do but don our lightest clothing—a swimming costume for preference—and fall asleep over a book under the squeaky punkah. “Stables” for noncommissioned officers and men is a welcome change at 5 P.M., and perhaps a game of polo for oflicers, and cricket or hockey for others isindulged in. After that the long, hot evening and bed. And this, with little variation, is the summer daily program me.

other from a “touch" ofthc sun.

And talking of work in the summer reminds Us of something which has long gone unremarked. ltis customary in many regiments, and formerly was a liardrandfast rule for work of any description to cease at about ‘._l A.M.. during the hot months. Bungalows are closed, and men forbidden to leave them under pain of a “spin up," This was, and even now is, supposed by some cranks to be the only way of preventing men from gettingr sunstroke. Certainly if a man never goes into the sun-

shinehe stands a fair chance of escaping a stroke! but—~and this is the pointof it—some

time or other he must be out in the sun : on service, for instance, or to quell a native riot/7»

if he isgnotfused to‘ the sun. and. has never ex; perien‘ced the full fur nace-like blast dfiti,

Readers will remember the baby panther which was presented to the Band during their sojourn in Naini Tal last year. lt proved a very docile pet, and has had the run of the Band bungalow since it was brought from the hills, and had it continued to behave in a manner beﬁtting a domestic pet. it would in all probability have lived to an honoured old age, the big drummer would have gone on wearing his buff drum apron and these lines would not have been written.

Curiously enough a party of three noncommissioned oﬁicers just returned from a shooting furlough in the Central Provinces brought back with them a handsome little panther cub which they captured. Only narrowly missing its family. evidently. This one, however, makes no pretence at docility, and is as savage a little beast as one

could imagine. It is kept at present in an iron-barred cage in the Oﬁicers’ Mess comv pound, and already rejoices in the name of “ Horace." One of its captors treats of its taking in a very interesting article in this number. There have been quite a number of strange pets in the Regiment, and next month we hope to have something to say about them.

for ﬁve months’ leave, and will not, conSequently, rejoin until the Regiment is at Muttra. Captain Lambert and Mr. Charrington have gone to Simla for the racing, whilst Captain Tomkinson and. Mr. Atkinson are in the Tami, below Naini Ta], where tigers are said to be numerous, and where two ferocious elephants are reported to be doing much damage. Major Wood and Mr. Atkinson have both been to Muttra to inspect our new quarters. Their reports are very favourable, and the re

sults of two expeditions after pig were bags of 12 and 8 respectively. The country appears to abound also in black buck, whilst the j/ieels are

some of the best in India.

We shall be able at at our

very gates,

The following are the remarks by the Senior Veterinary Ofﬁcer at his Annual In— spection :~ Horses.——The horses are in excellent condition and looking very well. The general health is excellent.

thus obviating the present extensive preparations for a shoot. The gardens, too, are all well cared for, and the bungalows in fairly good condition.

Bemuunls.— These are a good lot, in good

from Lucknow, but the 15th Hussars leave Muttra about 27th October, whilstit is under— stood the 8th Hussars come out by the ﬁrst

Of late, however, it has begun to“ feel its feet," and a few days ago imagining doubtless it was back in the jungle, it mistook the Trumpet-Major for a hunter of wild beasts. The

T, M. was mounted on his horse, 8,140, and

Forge—The forge is satisfactory, and the

was going towards the Mess, intent on nothing more blood-thirsty than his breakfast, when the panther who hasgrown into a magniﬁcent beast, sprang out of llldlllg upon him and proceeded to devour the horse. At all events the horse was mauled. Our panth-ar‘s fate is sealed. The Colonel has given orders for: its The big discharge by purchase or death. drummer favours the,_latter, method andal-

shoeing so good. Store shoes complete and well ﬁtted.

skin strapped across his chest as he marches ' " w. ‘ to church.

Muttra to enjoy sport

condition, suitable and sound. Stables—The stables and standings are well kept, clean and sanitary. The horses’ coats look well and their feet are in good condition. Line gear, grooming,kit, etc, is satis— factory, and the general stable economy is good.

ready is picturing himself with a lineleopard-

We hope in a future number to give an account of Major McNeile’s wedding, which took place at home on June 2nd, but at present we must conﬁne ourselves to wishing him and Mrs. McNeile the very best of luck, a wish in which, we feel sure, we are joined by all Royals. Colonel de Lisle left for home,on 3rd instant,

We do not know yet when we shall depart

Trooper.

The 2nd week in October will, in

all probability, witness our departure on trek to Muttra. The march should take about three weeks. There has been a revival of cricket in the Regiment. The ground is in ﬁne condition and several good matches have been played. The tournament for the Inter-Squadron Cricket Cup, which commenced last cold weather, but was delayed owing to strenuous work, on manoeuvres and training has just been

completed.

The winners are “ B ” Squadron.

Congratulations to Captain ’I‘idswell, who by reason of Lord Charles‘ appointment, has

just got his troop.

He is still at the Cavalry

School, Netheravon, and will not return until next year.

821

'1‘ H E

The following are the remarks made by the

General Officer Commanding the Brigade in the Quarterly Musketry Progress return for

the quarter ending 31st March, 1909 :— “ Very satisfactory. A good deal of interest must have been taken by all ranks to elicit such good results.”

THE‘EAGLE

EAGLE clasp for the battles of Fuentes d’Onor and Vittoria, and Major Purvis a medal for Vittoria. It will be noticed that the days were still far distant from the later general distribution of decorations and medals. On the 4th of January, 1815, a squadron proceeded to Truro, there being also a squadron at Taunton, and head-quarters and four

HISTORICAL RECORD 0f the First or the Royal Regiment of Dragoons, contain» ing an account of its formation in the reign of King Charles the Second, and of its sub-

troops at Exeter. The prospect of a lasting peace soon vanished ; and the return of Napoleon to France. the ﬂight of Louis XVIII. from Paris, the restoration of the Empire, the armed coali-

sequent services to the present time.

tion of the leading Powers of Europe, and the By General C. P. deAinslie.

(Continued) CHA PTER V.

appearance of a British army in the Netherlands, again called the Royal Regimeiit 0f Dragoons to the ﬁeld. About nine o’clock on the evening of the 21st of April, an express

Waterloo.

squadrons having already arrived at Ghent the whole regiment concentrated in the Villages round that city for more than a week, a rest very much needed by the horses. At this moment Ghent was crowded to excess, being the temporary refuge of Louis XVlll.

and his fugitive court,

but on

the

27th the Royals left the neighbourhood, and proceeded to occupy two or three small v'il lages near the town of Ninove, where their The Life Guards head—quarters were ﬁxed. and the whole town, and Blues were also in the ed in the canton were y Cavalr of the British villages adjacent. The Royal Dragoons were now in brigade with the Scots Greys and the lnniskilling Dragoons under Major-General the Honourable Sir William Ponsonby, thus forming the 2nd or the

" Union" brigade of

Canterbury for

cavalry. On the 29th of May took place near Gram-

marched to Richmond in Surrey, preparatory to being passed in review by the Commander-inChief, Field-Marshal His Royal

embarkation at Dover and Rainsgate. and on

mout, in the ﬁne meadows ou the banks of the

the 24th the Royals were en 'I‘Il'LL/I’ for that

Dender, and for which was paid from £400 to

destination, an augmentation of two troops

5500, that splendid review of the Cavalry and

Highness the Duke of York, K.G., after which, marching to Newbury, it was there joined by the depot com manded by Major Dorville, and proceeded to Bristol, Bath, and Troworidge,

being ordered at the same time. On the 18th (it May two squadrons under Captain Phipps

Royal Horse Artillery by His Grace FieldMarshal the Duke of Wellington, K.G., when

arrived at Exeter, directing the immediate

On the 27th of July, 1814, the regiment

but with the exception of the troop at the

latter place, the whole regiment united at Bristol under the command of Major DoI-_ ville, till the 11th of August, on the 24th of which monthareduction of two ti'oops was made in the establishment. At Bristol, upon the resumption of the command by Lieutenant-Colonel Clifton in September, the mess and band of the regi. ment were reconstituted, the former under the presidency 'of Captain Kennedy Clark, the latter under that of Captain Heathcote. In the ﬁrst Week in December the regi. ment moved to Exeter, and now was granted

march of the regiment

embarked at Ramsgate, and landed the fol»

lowing day at Ostend.

On the 14th, Captain

Clark’s squadron marched into Canterbury from Truro, where the two succeeding days were employed forming a depOt to he left under the command of Major Purvis. and in reCeiving atransfer of ahundi'ed horses from the 5th Dragoon (luards stationed at (hinterbury.

The headquarters and the remainder

LieutenantGeneral the Earl of Uxbridge received the Commander-in-Chief at the head

0le squadronsof the ﬁnest cavalry in the world, and of eight

troops of

magniﬁcent

horse artillery, drawn up in three lines, a troop of artillery on either ﬂank,

and two

troops in front of the centre of the second line. Brilliant weather favoured this grand military spactavie, and at half-past two o'cloca a salute of 21 guns announced the approach of

of the regiment embarking at Dover on the

the illustrious chief, who came attended by an

16th, they landed

immense and sparkling corti‘ge, among whom was conspicuous Marshal Marinont, Duc de 'Ragusa, mounted on the same white Arab he

at Ustend

the

following

morning under disagreeable circumstances ;

for, the horses being let down into the sea to swim ashore, almost every animal was seized: with a severe cold, which it required isome

time to getover.‘

had ridden at the battle of Salamanca,

After

an inspection of the trOops by his Grace, and

The town of- Ostend also

*aiimai'cn past,” the review ended at four

the permission to bear on the guidons and

was so crowded that the same evening the

appOintments the word “Peninsula” as an honourable mark- of distinction for' its services during these campaigns. Lieutenant: Colonel Clifton also received a medal with om-Z

regiment Was compelled to march iiitojthe

o’clock, wheii'each regiment ﬁled off to its cantonineiits, and‘until the 15th of June no-

country seven miles toa village called Ghisted.’

thing occurred of any ’moment, the ofﬁcers

The day following they marched to Bruges:

generally , aim-Using themselves .in visiting

and on the 19th,. Captain Phippswvith his two

83'

ueach other-"s quarters, and in sport, partic

larly horse-racing, in which the Earl of Uxbridge took especial interest. On the lath, howewr, certain rumo urs went abroad of the advance of the French, and at ﬁve o'clock on the morning of the 16th a sudden order of march arriving; at six o'cloca precisely: origMajor-General Sir William Ponsonby’s the to nued conti and , motion in ade was

towu of Grummove where a momentary halt place was made; aboutaleague beyond this rrende which hilly, and bad e the road becam ed ed thelino of march, now moreover imped by several other brigades of cavalry, very slow and tedious, so that this long and toil— did not some march of about ﬁftysix miles night, at k o‘cloc n come to an end until eleve Les of on positi the ed reach de when the briga had Quatres Bras, where a severe conflict

taken place with the French under Marshal Ney, when the Royal Dragoons bivouacked in aﬁeld of barley in rearor‘ the scene of action, The Prussian army of Marshal the Prince

or Blucher had been defeated by the Emper Napoleon at Ligny, on the 16th. and forced to retire, when the Duke of Wellington on the 17th made a corresponding movement, and in this operation the Royal Dragoons with the rest of the cavalry were employed to cover on the reireai of the infantry upon the pOsiti ably admir was ce servi of Waterloo. This

performed and exhibiteda mOst interesting spectacle of warfare, the effect of the same being heightened by the circumstances that nabout half-past si\ in the evening, a treme burst. over dous storm of thunder and rain

the opposing armies, and rendered the manoeuvring of cavalry among ﬁelds of high

standingcornextremelydifﬁcult.

Onesquad-

ronof the Royals was thrown out to-skirmish his ,under Major Radclyi‘fe, who-writes in

journal 2~

“ I was detached with my squadron to cover -Generthe brigade by skirmishing, and Major brigade the al Sir Williameousonbyand,

THE- EAGLE

generally, were pleased to applaud the style

in which we acquitted ourselves.

It rained

with greater violence than I have ever witnessed before, which I found to my advantage when it was my turn to skirmish. The

enemy had two squadrons of chasseurs oppos; ed to me, and as they could not overpower us by their ﬁre, they huzzaed and endeavoured to excite each other on with cries of ‘ Vive

l ’Empereur ! ’ and once actually charged to» wards my skirmishers, but they stopped short." Towards the evening the brigade reached the position in front of Waterloo, where it halted, and again passed the night in the open ﬁelds without provisions of any kind and

exposed to continued rain.

The only casual-

ties in the regiment on the 17th were one man killed by a cannon shot, and two wounded.

restraint? .

won or we should have lost our mealies. Ju inp-

e morning, ,bivouac

:f:llltet11']sev;e:: gotwn away, blankets stripped iey lay on the ground. hel-

mets rising like coveys of partridges,

were

whirled

were

away

whilst

their owners

struggling with cloaks and blankets; from

A.M, till dawn we were tramping to and fro to keep our blood in circulation; the hands of the men, going out on patrol and day outposts, were so benumbed with handling their saddlery and equipment. that they were quite unable to saddle up and had to call for assist—

ance. We went out and brought in a convoy and party of Boer prisoners, walking all the way leading our horses, only the advanced guard being mounted :as a rule, cavalrymen grumble if they have to walk far, but no one'com-

On the morning of the 18th, the allied army plained on this day. formed in order of battle, and Major Radclyﬁe’s journal speaking of the Royal Regiment of Dragoons says :—

“We found ourselves in our place in close column, behind the second line of infantry, fetlock deep in mud ;

no baggage for

Next morning, the 3rd instant, there was an inch of ice on the springs at which we obtained our drinking water. Went out With thirty men under the Officer Commanding Squadron to a kraal, seven miles

the

from camp, to get mealies, taking with us an ofﬁcers. and neither provisions nor water for

during the campaign; perched on the breezy

artillery wagon. The kraal was in a hollow in rocky ground, one big mass of rock rising close by. On this I was lying searching the surrounding country with my glasses, and saw two men riding rapidly across a ridge in front, going away from us. Presently some more came in View, advanced towards us and then retired to the ridge ; having reported this, we went on watching and saw parties ride oﬂ‘ to the right and left and the remainder, except one Or two, disappeared over the sky-line. There were about a hundred of them, and it soon became evident that they were working The wagon being ready round our ﬂanks. we moved off, and had not gone half a, mile, when we saw the enemy galloping for a ridge over which our road lay. Then there was a race, both us. and the Boers went for the

heights of Holnek we caught the full effects

ridge for all we were worth; fortunately we

the men, though some stray cattle had been

killed and eaten, and a small supply of spirits had a short time before been found on the road, so that we might be said to go ‘ coolly , into action, for every man was wet to the skin.” (To be continued.)

SOUTH AFRICAN LETTERS. VAALBERG, TRANSVAAL, 28th June, 1901. DEAR M, June has been quite an interesting month, and we shall remember the second day there-

of for a long

time, as

being

the coldest

'Tnn EAGLE ing Off our horses and rushing up the ridge we opened ﬁre; this caused the Boers to pull up and take cover. Sending the wagon on ahead, we held successive positions, practically a running ﬁght for three or four miles, both parties galloping from cover to cover. Although outnumbered, four to one,

we had the best advantage of the ground. our road to camp lying rightjalong the ridge, with excellent cover provided by masses of rocks against which the enemy’s bullets ﬂattened themselves, except those which whistled over our heads. About three miles from camp the Boers drew off and we came quietly in. On arriving in camp we heard that a wagon with a team of twelve mules, which had gone far ther than it should have done in search of ﬁre-

wood, had been captured.

We had just got

dinner up when someone shouted, “there goes our wagon,” pointing to a distant ridge on which, against the sky-line, appeared a wagon and about twenty mounted men. Our men gave a yell, dropped their untasted dinners and rushed to their horses, Saddled up, and away we went without waiting for orders, streaming up the hill like a pack of liounds in full cry. The wagon and escort which had been moving quietly along, suddenly wheeled round and ﬂed, having several close shaves from the shells tired from our gun in camp The pace soon began to tell and many droiiped behind, some bogged, others blown ; however, the Squadron Leader and about a score of us, well mounted, rode down the wagon some eight or ten miles from camp, and, to our bitter disappoint— ment and disgust. found it belonged to the lnniskillings, to whom the escort also belong— ed. They had been out foraging and took us it. was a very savage-lOOking for Boers. crowd that wended' its way slowly. back to ,camp, on foot, leading their sweating and blown horses. '1 . On the 4th instant a convoy arrived from Carolina, escorted by detachments. of Impe-

rial Light Horse, West Australians and Rifles (M. 1.). Next day we went out with the Light Horse on reconnaissance, taking two guns and

a pom—pom ; found Boers on kopjes near Kraal, where we were attacked on the 3rd Skirmishing went on till noon, when the enemy retired, Left Holnek on the 13th and rejoined the Regiment near Amster~ dam. entering the town on the 15th : passing through many orange groves, the fruit being ripe and luscious. Passed Kitchener‘s Column on the 18th, sniping on left ﬂank where my troop was thrown out.

Suddenly we heard a burst of

rapid ﬁre between us and the Column, and leaving a section out, we galloped to the scene of action, several ricochets passing over our heads cu mute. On arriving at the crest of the rise we found in the hollow beneath a party of [nriiskillings shooting pigs, with a charming indifference to the dangerous zone, the culminating point being Pork !

We had quite a lively day on the 19th, and found the wagon we had lost near Holnek, submerged in a pan (pond or small lake), together with a dozen other wagons and small

carts. This was nearSmits’ Farm iSmits isa Boer leaderi There were-a good many Boers about and we had a trooper killed (Pie. Walters), and another wouzided (Pte. Harris), also several horses hit.

Next day. lieil‘ Lillefoiitein in. farm with a. pretty nainerbily Fountain), the Pro\‘iiserl'ril‘slliil s party. who had pushed forward iii front of the advanced scouts, for the

purpose of (according to ihe troops‘ opinion) seeing if there Were any chickens “ to go,” were greeted with a hot lire from the aforesaid farm and had to seek safety in rapid

ﬂight, to the intense joy and the troops.

amusement of

The advanced Squadron rushed the farm under awhiﬁ of shrapnel from our guns, and captured the. chickens (the Boers did not waitih

_ ‘

. .

The following day, 21st instant, broke very

THE EAGLE

THE EAGLE nggS'. my troop being detailed for rear guard, we left camp at 5 A.M , and remained

on the outpost line until the column marched ; the fog lifted about 9 A.M, and the Boers

came up behind and opened ﬁre, we held them until reinforcements arrived and drove

them back. . On arriving at Carolina, where there were two squadrons of the 5th Lancers, we heard that 300 Australians with two pom-poms had been captured.

Leaving the Naval gun, howitzer, and two lb-pounders at Carolina, we left the town on the 23rd, to pick up the trail of the Boers, and on the 24th arrived at Grobelars Rest and discovered that the Boers had bivouacked there the previous night, and had gone off in

two parties. one going north, crossed the railway after destroying the track by burn-

ing the sleepers and bending the rails, heat. ing them in the ﬁre of sleepers; the other trail led off to the south-east.

We recennoitered the latter trail on the 25th

various places an d‘times, and feeling conﬁdent

that the result of my investigatitms will be interesting to the present members, I have ventured to write this letter, hoping it will not take up too much of your valuable space, but if better copy crowds it out, so much the better. Changes have been so great, that photo. graphs prior to the South African war, are

ruled out. and we commence with a group of forty members taken at Bloemfontein after

the cessation of hostilities. Out of that forty there

now remain but ﬁve, namely,

Allen.

Cooke, Elliott, Roberts, and Sales. i might mention, as a curious coincidence, that the above ﬁve are sitting together in the photo— graph. The next photo is one taken at Shornclil’fe in 1903, soon after the regiment arrived from Africa.

(Red)

“

(White)

“

At the present time, I

period, and the second just prior to the departure of Colonel Lord Basing. These being

CREAGeN-SCARiBH.

FELIX LEOPARDUS. A Shooting Furlough Incident. News came from the village that a leopard

This photograph shows Colonel Tomkinson sitting in the centre with Captain Hardman and R.S.M. Parsons on either side; some of your readers will remember whata picture our old Colonel, mounted on his chestnut

and had killed and dragged away a cow into

Here we ﬁnd only a dozen left of the origin—

regiment.

charger, was, an ideal Dragoon as he galloped

there we ﬁnd

up to the head of the regiment in the Phoenix

that in less than a year about a dozen no long‘ er play tennis or twenty-ﬁves as members

reproduced in The Eagle,

and

DEAR EDIT-OR,

dated 1905.

I believeI am not far out if I

Park, in dear old, dirty Dublin days. Many, too, will remember the cold night march in Northern Natal when the news of Captain Hardinan’s death was quietly passed down the column

“ ,Sergeant’s ” remarks 76 changes in Sergeants’ Mess, caused me to turn over a number of photographs of members taken at

say only ﬁfteen of the fifty-two photos that ﬁll the two frames, are present members of the Mess.

“ Peter ” Allen (who reverted from Fencing Instructor to Sergeant in order to go out to

LONDON,

May 7th. 1909.

life). Charlie Grattage (killed in action). Holdsworth (awarded the Distinguished Service Medal in the South African war accimpanied Colonel Burn-Murdoch up Spion Kop the m'irning of the retirement.) “ Cabby " Parﬁtt (now Bandmaster of the lst Battalion, Royal Munster Fusiliers), Vermeulen (now in Nigeria), John Lyons (who receiveda commission in the Infantry and died in France, Topsy Thorne (last heard of at the Cape), “Tiny " White, Harry Parmenter, “Nellie” Smith, “ Squeaker ” Mills, Tom Hall, “Keck " Haines, “ Handsome " Mann, Charlie Lindley, “ Bill” Raven, “ Polly ” Hop» kins, “ Boss " Bee, “ Sukkie” Neath, Jimmy Bindon, Dick Kendon, “ Bogie" Milnes, Rapps, Gough, Greenﬁeld, Richards, Hartland, Lindsey, Crampthorne, Mel moth, Briggs ('2), Weston, Webb, and Yours truly,

about the same, and we treat them as one.

Now we get to the latest, taken in 1908, and OL 01..

and who

and two cubs had

ﬁfty-six shown in the above, have now left the

Yours, etc ,

the regiment,

was the first member of the Mess to lose his

eight Statf Sergeants.

al forty, and no less than forty-three out of

July lst.

lconclude with a few remarks about a group of Corporals taken at Dublin in mill, the only representative now serving, is the present Regimental Sergeant‘Major. [t is interesting to note that out of fortythree Corporals in 1894, thirtytwo took part in the South African war, ﬁve years afterwards; twenty-ﬁve became Sergeants, and

South Africa with

taken about the same time, the numbers are

and the pom-pom had lots of practice every

rejoin the Column on

The Sliorncliﬂ'e Photograph. 8"! War Medals. 1st Lucknow (White) " 77 “

“

stand and ﬁght, evidently waiting for a chance to take us on the hop. Our one gun We expect to

not visible.

3rd

believe, there are only fourteen left out of the ﬁfty-six who sat for the Shorncliffe picture. We turn next to two photographs taken at Lucknow, the first, in the “ Paddy Reynolds "

day.

“Tiny ”

White, “Tom” King, “ Bill ” Greenham, “ Donavon” Ross, Two "Charlie” Cocks, “ Billy” Burgess, 'l‘imlock, “ Bob ” Connett, “Jack " Woodward, “ Dick ” Richardson, Metcalf, “ Jimmy "Bindon, “Jimmy” Ricks, and “Rocko ” Stuart. Another interesting item is the number of war medals shown in the various photographs. 1 do not much that the numbers given below are absolutely accurate, as some medals are

‘md

Bloemfontein group.

good cover, or would have had a heavier casualty list. For the next few days before rejoining the Column, Boers hung round us, but would not

are Mr, Parsons, “Willie” Brown,

The number of rionvcommissioned officers,

about three score and ten strong, our troop

a dozen horses, but were fortunate in getting

To go back a little further, I have by me a small group taken at Ladysmith, which may be interesting. It represents twenty members of the mess; there is one of. that twenty now serving in the regiment, and that one is Scott (well known vverywhere), the others

in this picture, amount to fifty-six, but only nineteen of these are represented in the

and came in touch with a party of the enemy out on the left ﬂank was cut OE and we galloped three miles to assist them; they lost

of the best Mess in the service. Take the large-framed photos in the Mess,

Others represented in the group included

an old fort near,

been in the cattle yard,

and we were asked if we

would go and shoot the family. Leopard in a fort! Can’t get out, sounds easy. Certainly, we’ll go. So, off we went to the place, and while the shilcarz‘ went to find coolies for heaters, we had a look round the fort. From the outside the walls rose, sheer from the maidan, twenty-ﬁve to thirty feet high, and were, as I afterwards painfully discovered, twelve feet thick and built of very rough stone. The only entrance was guarded by asmaller wall, enclosing several buildings, probably the guards’ quarters, with an opening scarcely wide enough to ad mit a horse.

Passing between these houses, one came to the entrance to the fort proper, an archway, over which evidently was the Rajali's or chief’s house. This building, like tiie remainder of the larger houses, had a number of small rooms,

narrow passages,

and even

narrower stairs, winding always in the native style. Inside, the fort was divided into two courtyards, each with wells, mosques and images, and quarters for a garrison. Evidently the plaee is a relic of the Mahrattas’ invasion of Central India, and those who know their history, could form an idea of its age. How ever, although the outer walls are still sound, the buildings inside are nothing but ruins. Those who have any knowledge of old Indian buildings

can imagine

the number

of holes, passages and dungeons, in such aplace as this fort, and you who shoot can

picture what ideal “layups ” for leopard these dark holes and passages are: cool in summer, warm in winter, and dry in the rains, unlimited water from a. well with a spiral stairway, and from a bathing-place, entrance to which is gained by an under-

ground passage

THE

THE EAGLE

beneath the walls into a

smaller" courtyard outside the fort itself. It isa mystery how this tank is ﬁlled with water ; its far above the level of the water in the well, and some hundreds of feet above the river.

Some climbed trees, some towers, and somewalls, and from these points of vantage. commenced to throw stones into the ruins below, with an accompaniment of awl’ul yells and ear-splitting shrieks. The din had reached its height, when I was surprised to see the leopard appear on the top of the dividing wall, to reach which, the animal must have leaped between fifteen and twenty feet. A moment‘s hesitation, then springing into a window of a house, through a room and on to a wall on which two natives had been posted. to turn the leopard towards me. However, things didn’t go as planned. The big cat made for them, and as they pulled their bodies up on to another wall, shouted, as they saw my gun to my shoulder, “ Roko ” (stop), sahib. They were directly in the line of ﬁre, and the leopard passed within six inches of their hanging legs, with a whoof ! whoof ! My companion was sitting in a balcony of the large building at the entrance overlooking the courtyard, but could not see anything of the animal until it passed through the house behind him, when he got a glimpse of it bounding past. The leopard did not stop, butleaped fromawiudow on to a wall that ran parallel to, but lower than the outer wall, and which was covered over with a thick growth of vegetation, leaving a good path between it and the outer wall. Here " J. ” lost a chance. for trying to peer through this screen ofleaves, the animal was scrambling

the whole of the ruins are covered with thick creeper. Now, having described the place I’ll relate the circumstances under which

up the farendof the wall on to the roof of the mosque. A snap shot, and it staggered as if it, but only for a second, and it was away in the ruins. The beaters in the meanwhile had conﬁned a cub in a hole through the outer wall, appar. ently a drain, level with the ground inside the fort, but ten feet or so from the ground outside. Toe beaters got to work again among the ruins of the temple, but without avail. After an hour’s rest, we decided to try again, but were careful this time that there were

The beaters having arrived, and instructions given to them that the young ones Were

- not to be killed, we took up positions (in the courtyard nearest the entrance) by the advice of a native who seemed to be more intelligent than the rest. I say, ‘seemed,’ because he could understand our Dcit, perhaps that was

not a sign of intelligence, what?

Anyway,

the beaters went into the second courtyard.

This time the

animal,

with a

series of springs. went along the Avsliaped pinnacles on the top of the wall. A rapid aim and bangwsix inches higher and I would be in possession of a leopardskin. As it was, [only enveloped it in dust and splinters of stone, though from what transpired later: a splinter or twi had evidently in its body

taken client

()n this occision ilie Iormer route was not taken by the animal which bolted into a long, narrow passage or hole beneath the floor of a house. Two hours’ shouting. the throwing of stones and lighted straw into the hole, and in fret, every expedient, save that ol crawling into the holeon hands and knees we could think

These h0pes gradually dwindled, however, as, in spite of the awful din, nothing could be

seen, although thereis little

doubt that the

animal was stillin the fort. We decided, there»

fore, to capture the cub and proceeded to put our plan into operation. The idea was for one of us to go outside and with astick push the youngster into a sack which was placed over the hole inside. I decided to do the pushing, and after a struggle, having attained. the desired position in a box, precariously placed on a heap of stones, (by no means an easy posi» tion to attain or retain,) I tried to push this bundle of fur and concentrated fury out of the hole, and after most of the skin of my arm was on the wall, I ﬁnally had a bundle of straw fastened to the pole, and setting alight o it. pushed it into the hole. The youngster bit and fought gamely even against the tire, and it was only after its whiskers were burnt otl‘ that it slowly backed into the sack, and was captured. He is in Lucknow now; we call him “ Horace!”

R. A. a,‘

of, faded to shift the brute, and only when

after uncocking our weapons and iii desperation tipping a couple of hundredweight of stone, through a hole which we made in the

HORSE MANAGEMENT IN INDIA. BY

COL. H. DE LiSLE, 0.8., D.S.O. tloor, did the animal

bolt,

nearly

knockng

over a crowd of natives in its exit, and leaving atrailof blcody water

in its wake for the

In India, it is necessary for every horseowner to be also a horse‘master. Good syces are difﬁcult to ﬁnd,

ﬁrst few bounds. Once again the

To make the business of shooting harder,

we didn’t shoot the leopard.

not any natives in the way. Hardly had the shouting started, when, in the same place on the dividing wall, a leopard appeared (we believe another and larger one than seen beforel through the house again, and, I am waiting with my rille, aimed on to a spot on the wall where it should pass. Alas, for my reckoning!

8.9

EAGLE

beating

commenced,

but

nothing was Seen ; so being tired out, back we

Went to camp alter securely fastening the mouth of the hole in which the cub was.

and even the best re,

quire constant supervision and guidance. On the other hand, syces will quickly Learn if treated with patience, and once taught, are most reliable servants

To train syces, it is

essential to possess a good knowledge of sound stable‘nianagement and to organize a This system good system from the tirst. must comprise feeding, watering, grooming and staoling, besides suitable work in proportion to the quantity of solid food consumed. All these headings tend towards one object, to maintain horses in health and comfort, and

hopes of still getting abig one.

quired of them without breaking down. . This

The following day, after getting ready the articles we considered necessary for the capture of the cub, we went to the for-L

The, youngster though it

was

still secured all right,

was evident that its mother had

made valiant

et‘l'orts to

liberate

it during

the night, and as no "pug marks“ appeared the Wood-ashes, sprinkled across the only entrance the previous evening, We had

to prepare them to carry out the work re-

“so

preparation or training must differ accarding

fore, is not only the care and the comfort of the majority of the horses in India, but also to be eli’ected by acquiringa knowledge of the subject of Horse Management.

makes all arrangements connected with the horses, receives his orders from the master direct, and furnishes his monthly account separate from the Bearer’s Bill. Under the digniﬁed title of Jemadar and

Each class requires adiiferent scale

Theuniversal peculation prevalent among

the increased pay of one or two rupees a

of feeding and work, and it is this'which constitutes the problem which has to be solved by horse-owners in India. Moreover, every

servants, and their general ignorance. should be realized. Finally, the exercise necessary to maintain health, as well as the work that can reasonably be expected from each class

month, he exercises authority over the other syces, and can usually be trusted to do his best for the welfare of his horses. On the other hand, with the Bearer in charge, unless

of animal, and the minimum scale of feeding

an exceptional man,

well,

to the "purpose for which they are Wanted, but certain general instructions are applicable to all. Horses in India are used for racing, polo. and hunting, hacking, and for carriage

work.

class of horse requires different treatment. An Arab, 3. countryvbred, and an Australian may be wanted for the same kind of work, but to treat them alike as regards exercise

to prove to my readers that true economy is

the stable never

looks

few owners have the time or the oppor-

necessary in each case. can be easily estimated Moreover, the more attention devoted to the stable, the greater economy will be practised. . . . . . . In India, it is no unusual thing to ﬁnd the Bearer the man responsible for the stable. His duties are not only to engage the syces, but even to buy the forage, bedding and stable necessaries. I strongly disapprove of this custom, which is the result of ignorance on

tunities to acquire, in consequence it is far

the part of the master about horses combined

stable.

more economical to engage the services of a.

with shrewdness on the part of the Bearer,

to replace him by a better, and a good Jemadar should be entrusted, under personal super. vision, with everything connected with the stable, including the engagement of syces.

and feeding, willusually result in disappointment. For example, to feed a lady’s hack on the same scale as a race horse would soon

render ita positive danger to ride, and to hunt an animal accustomed only to the shafts would be certain t1 break it down.

V’I‘raininghorses for racing is an art which

public trainer. I do not propose, therefore, to deal with this subject in the present article, but to confine myself to the treatment of Troop horses, hunters and polo ponies, hacks and carriage horses. ' Even a superficial knowledge of horsemastership will enable owners to keep their animals healthy and fit for work. and beyond the obvious humanity in providing for the comfort of their animals, the economy effected will be considerable. I have no hesitation in stating the opinion that by far the larger proportion of. horses Which become unfit for work from lameness or loss of condition is the result of ignorant treatment or improper feeding. Of the latter class, starvation, chiefly due to dishonesty on the part of servants, is the main cause. It is also a melancholy

fact that many horses in India are maintained by owners who cannot well afford to keep them, and who endeavour to effect small coonomies at the expense of their charges. The

main object of this

article,

there-

who by the judicious use of bucksheesh among the syces is a‘3le to prove that h: is capable of supervising the stable quite satisfactorily and to save the master much worry and

annoyance.

THEEAGLE

T HE VETAG L It

In cases where the master isa

hard-worked ofﬁcial, with no one to help him at

h me, the Bearer appears to be the only solution. A new-comer to the country, with no knowledge of the language, ﬁnds that his

The Bearer being absolutely ignorant

about horses, and caring less,

has but one

object in view—«that of making money. He buys the food, and buys the worst and cheap est; he weighs the food, and cuts the amount on every occasion. Moreover, he is almost certain to be in league with the Bunia, from whom he receives a considerable dasturi* at the end of eacl. month. Istrongly recommend that Bearers should have nothing to do with the

If the Jemadar is not good, it is easy

sand-grouse, partridge and bare in

the

Central

from not to mention the additional advantages the “Pot Hunter's" point of View, of which they were full in praises and otherwise. They were kind enough to allow me to make the acquaintance of “Horace,” a panther cub, which they captured alive and brought back with them. “ Horace ” (as they have named him) ones not seem to take kindly to captivity, although they assure me he is getting quite tame, and if he was any wilder when they captured him, 1 can only conjecture What he was like, for such a bundle of ferocity, viciousness and gameness contained in such a small animal is remarkable. Reports reach me of an enormous buck, with horns over 24 inches, the other side of

Bakas, in the Sultanpur Road,—-what achance for someone I A party have just gone out to the Palia district at the invitation of a Rajah. What a

glorious opportunity.

I attach the utmost importunc

to this

initial change, for until the Jemadar has re,

placed the Bearer, stable management is but,

shooting,

Provinces, is unsurpassed,

We wish them luck,

and record heads. Our “Old Isaak ” is very despondent, the Goomtee is impossible, being very low and choked with weeds. but tells me of glorious days to come at Muttra, where ﬁsh under IOlbs. are ignored ! I am afraid we shall have no more ﬁshing in Lucknow till after the

eye-wash. rains.

SHIKAREE.

* Customary gratuity.

(To be contin 11rd.)

only means of communicating with his syces is through his Bearer, and this personal servant at once assumes charge. If anyone suggests that his work is in the house and that the stable is in no way his department, he can prove with ease that it is the custom for the Bearer t0 superintend the stable, and also explains that without his assistance

there is certain to be trouble, a prophecy he manages to fulﬁl at the shortest possible From the ﬁrst moment that the Bearnotice er can be dispensed with in the stables, they should be placed in charge of a head syce, who in addition to looking after one animal

DETACHMENT LETTER.

SHIKAR.

MANORA CAMP, June lst, 1909.

Since writing last month, most of our regimental shikarees are back again, bringing with them a good selection of trophies, which DEAR. Eorr0n, includes sambhur, cheetal,

blaCK buck and

chinkara heads and skins, also panther and hair-raising yarns. The latter being the biggest of all. We note they are just as full of going away again as they were before they

went ; so evidently they have enjoyed themselves. ’

They tell me that for agood day’s sport

Since my last letter, Musketry has de» manded the Whole of our attention, but we are now ﬁnished, mucn to the relief of many. We have launched our b01ts, the Dreadnaughts, and hope to uphold our reputation as oarsmen, as our previous detachments have done. The present week being Ranikhet

THE EAGLE

week. no doubt opportunities will be given to B show our prowess. Our footballers have been doing exceptionally well. and we conﬁdently expect to see them well to the front in the forthcoming tournaments. The following are the results up to date :— Royals. 3 goals rs. Diocesan School, 1 goal. Royals. 7 goals its “ King's Own “ Regiv k

ment, 0.

Royals, 2 goals t.5. Diocesan School. '3. Royals. 4 goals 178‘. "’ King’s Own " Regi \ ment. 0. Royals. ﬂgoals r<. Band. H. L. 1.. 1 goal. There is nothing further of note at present but 1 hope to be able to give some account of our doings during Raniahet week in my next letter. L IN NUBIBCS.

SERGEANTS’ MESS NOTES. There is little to record under this headimr at present Work and weariness are all w: are conscious of experiencing, and this will probably continue until the cold weather when the weariness will be the result of something quite diiferent. We make spasmodic elforts to instil a little interest into life, and a practice dance held on the 26th ultimo. and a billiard match which extended over a Week of last month are examples. The former was jolly and well attended, and the evening being hot. one or two Singers lengthened the gaps between the dances. and gave the energetic dancers time to recover. The billiard match was between “A

and

u D “ squadrons. and resulted in a win for

the latter by 23:3 points.

Games were 150 up

The scores were as follows :—— 1- A " Squadron.

SQ M SFordom

Sergt. 'l‘iiompson .. " Lotti; .. .. Bean " Farin-N’l‘gt Hood . Seigt. Reynolds .

“1)“ Squat/Mm

7 ‘. 5 r '.’

‘4". '- SULC“ Yansoii MN. 'l‘imson ‘ M Jeil'i'ey .T Sin .1113. dr’ﬁﬁih ..

. .

THE EAGLE

mgLast resumsz— month‘s s poon shoot ‘ ‘ gaie (r v the follow. ' lst. Sergt. Newton

83‘. points.

2nd.S.S.M.Joll'roy

8'3

CRICKET. ~~n” SQUADRUN lid.“1i" soUAiinoN.

' “D" Sousnnon.

Jeffrey and Bunker tied for End place. but the former won the “ ﬁre off.” 1 I think it was on the 32nd of May that two teams from the Mess met in mortal combat on the polo held. They played four (-huk/t'rrs under the guidance of Cap» tain ’I‘omkinson as umpire and succeeded 1n putting up a creditable display. With further practice, there should result something quite good to watch, " Whites " beat “Colours ” by two goals to one goal. The following comprised the teams :— ll’liites.—lt. S. M. Allen. S. S M Jeffrey. Sergeant Vanson and Corporal McLellan. Colour-z—Sergeants Goddard, Reynolds. Sutch and Plumb. 1 Several of the members hope to put in a few days at .Vluttra before the summer is over, with the object of ruconnoitering the pos1tion, so to speak.

So far no one seems to know much about it. and rumours of its desirability or otherwise are conﬂicting. A propos. the following story came to me .3“ few days ‘ng.

8 SM RR. Jell'rey, c and h Seatoii .. 1 3 c and h Senton lice-Coriil. Knight. c :3 c lieall.b1’.ray Heal]. h Seaton 1 e Protts. b Seaton Pte. Isa-at .rnn out Sorgt. Vaiison. 0 May. b

Earl . l’to. ltankln. run on: Mr. G. ”A. Edwardes. c Bray. b Eari .. Sei'gt. Stitch. c Seaton. b Earl .. l’1.u.l5ain.noi.ont .. lr’tt- Fox. 0 Seatonm Earl

1 c tichardson. b Seaton 5 c Richardson. b Seaton 1', lbw. b Bray 4 b Earl 2 not out

3‘ c Boall. ii Bray

lit'r.-Cor]il.\\’liir.iiiigliain

r Weeks. h Earl

l’to. Reynolds. 1: Hook.

Earl

U c Richardson.

E‘J'Irns

h SealllLf

ton

“B” & "C” SQUADRONs. Sergt. Edwards. h Ran— kin .. 12 b Hastings Sergt. Fisher. c Vanson. 1) Hastings .. lv'. did not but. Pte. Weeks. b Rankin! . 1 do. Sergt. Angus. b Ranking. :1 do. Mr. F. W. W. li‘itzficruld. b Ranking: .. (10.. Capt. ii. A. 'l‘onikinson. c Langley. b McDonald .. 15 not ontv li‘dm.lteeve.c\'a11son. b McDonald .. 30 not out l’te. Earl. b Mcl)onald.. (l (lid not bat. Ptr Collier. run out .. ll do. Pte Rozvrs.c & h llanit-

l) b Svaton. 3

EJ'ZI'll-S

Total

demerits of Muttra.

the

SQUADRON.

REGIMENTAL GAZETTE.

Capt. H. A. Tomkinson. c and b Vanson Ptc. Bray. c Vanson. b Rankin Pto. May. c Ranking. 1) Wliittingham Corpl. Seat-on. run out Ptc. Weeks. 0 .Teil'rey. b Vanson S (2.31.8. Bonll. shod Stitch. 1‘: Vanson Pte. Earl. b Vanson Lco.-Gorpl Richardson. b Vanson Pto. Hook. c and l) Vanson Ptc Protts. c Fox. 1) Vanson Corp]. Wyatt. not out

London. Gazette.

Ertract front " London Gazette. "‘ dated ll'ui' Ofﬁce, May 4111. 1909 :—

I‘Lrtras

se18!Dragoons.—Captain [lord C. 1“. Li. Fitzllaurice, Prince of conded lor service as Eqnerry to H. R H. the Wales (April 1st). i

Total

Said one:

merits or

SQU ADRONS.

“ i believe "A” & " D” Sonaonoss.

it‘s a perfectly rotten show." H My dear boy. what nonsense." replied the other. “Why. there‘s an excellent train

leaves there every

day l”

V SERGEANT. "

He had just returned from furlouO‘h in mugland. and. after his ﬁrst night com plined angrily of the mosquitoes whose rayaues had

had the effect of transforming his feathres out of all geographical recognition. " I had -i terrible night I" he exclaimed, and then lapsed

silent and thoughtful while :1. l‘ew muttered expressionsol sympathy came to him from the small assembly. Suddenly his face clearcd : "' l suppose they didn't lan‘ow I’d been out I . here before I”

* (For two wickets)

£7 Innings declared closed. 19B»:

TWO Olﬁt'el‘s. W110 Shall be

discussing

.. 113

5.”)

Pte.Underhill,

~k‘

11m. won :— i?

Captain 1st Di'og/omls.——Lieutenant (I. R. ’l‘idswell to ho service as nice Lord 0.1“. 1.}. Fitzﬂaiirirc. seconded for iApriI lst). Eqnerry to H. R. H. the Prince of7." Wales -.+ a; ax-

Ed-

.lloil E.r£rturtfroin " London Gazette. ” (Inlet? ll'ur (mica. -.-:

were

do.

5 c A: b Hastings 11 Extras

Total Total

" A ” A': “1)” SQUA. DRONS m. " B” it: “ C"

unnamed,

Corpl. McDonall, not out Euros ..

3 1) Fisher \V'dr

c S 8.31. 1:. 1i JeiTrey, Woolts. b Earl Angus. (3 1’11'. Ranking. 0 Edwards .. A“, 1) l’to Hastings. c Edwards .. Ed1: Holt. li’din wards, b Earl .. l’te. Isaacs. 0 Fisher. b Earl Sorgi. Vanson. b Fisher

Promotions and Appointments 5 1) Edwards 3 b Ed wards

1 u 1“lt}'4Gel‘ald,b Collier .. 3 lbw. hColliei‘ Ci c at l) ('olliei‘ 4 b Edwards

M ri‘b‘v. D’A. Edwardes. n

.. Earl h & l’to. Langley. .. Fisher b it Surat. Pong. c .. Fisher not McDonald. ll'dm .. out E rim--

«1

llUL

0111.

3 r li‘itnGorald. 1) Earl 1 b Collier 2 li Coaliwr >1 _,. J4

nt on tho Sub‘ 31102. Corp] 3. S. Lockycr proinotnd Sergea List. Veterinary Department. Indian Unattached Sergeant. .‘ ‘50. Coriil Bushman to be Unpaid LanceLornoral. ‘37. Lee -Corpl. Alliott to be Paid LanceCorporal. as 60,Pte.31nrpby to be Unpaid LanceL‘lLTlOlLf/Il and Leary

15th May. loop, to 11th 4131'». Sergt. Lock to Naiiii ’l‘al from July. lawn to Tal from 15th May, 1909, 1379, Sergt. Allchiu to Naini lSEh June. 1909. ar from 15th May, 19.39, to 357.3. Corpl. Cresswell to Lando 15th J nne. 19119. from 3th June. 1901), to ”1.1 «1111.001‘pl. Fitch to Landom‘ August. 1909.

TH‘E

94:

EAGLE

5628, Lce.-Corpl. Richardson to Naini Ta] from 5th June,

5412, Corpl. Murkett granted extension to 30th June. 1000.

1909. to 27th June. 1909. 5821, Lee-Corp]. Woods to Lucknow and Mussoorie from

5070, Tptr. Parry granted extension to31st June, 1909.

Transfers.

1st June. 1909. to lst August, 1909. 5212. Lee -Corpl. Eshmeade to Calcutta Irom 19th

May,

1909, to 19th July, 1909. 5685. Lce.-Corpl. Hawkett to Majgaon from lst- June, 1909, to lst July. 1909. 34, Lce.--.Corpl Greville to Majgaon from lst June,1909, to 1st July. 1909.

Sergt.

Whittick

Asst. Pte

to the

Indian

Unattached

List as

agle

Che

A MONTHLY CHRONICLE OF THE ROYAL DRAGOONS. “ SPECTEMUR AGENDO.”

Overseer in the Military Farms Department.

Garner from Highland Light Infantry.

VOL. 111.

THURSDAY JULY 1513. 1909.

No.

Service. 4178, Sorgt. Bunker .'e-engaged to complete 21 years with the Colours.

ANSWERS T0 CORRESPONDENTS.

EDITORIAL NOTICES.

5091, Lea-Corn]. Gardner to Majgaon from lst June, 1909, Discharges. to lst July. 1909.

Lucknow. INDIA.

5731, Pte.1\llchin after 18 years’ service.

JULY. 1909.

5765, Lee-Carol. MacDonald to Landour from 25th May, Medals.

1909. to 24th June, 1909. 5672, Lce.-Corpl. Lockyer to Landour from lst June, 1909.

Schoolmaster Roots, awarded Long

Service

and Good

Subscriptions ft: "’17:: Eur/la" 111'8113./‘(1llo11'.3','7 111/33 11 home.11e1'111L11111/1. .. .. .. 1111'.3' in [Lu/£11 -. ..

’ Conduct Medal.

to slst July. 1909. 5654, Lea-Corp]. Hewitt to Landour from 15th May. 1909.

331:1,Sergt. Harman, awarded Long

Service and Good

Conduct Medal.

to 15th June, 1909. 5361.,Bandsman Boyne to Landour

from 15th May, 1909,

709, Sergt. Saddler Carter. awarded Long Service and Good Conduct Medal.

' to 15th June, 1909. 5881, Bandsman M nrphy to Landour from 15th May, 1909:

Jloves.

to 15th June, 1009. 5690, Bundsman

Eelgate to Landour from 15th May, 1909.

to 15th June, 1909. 5646, Bandsman Saunders

to Landour

from 15th May.

1909, to 15th June. 1909. 3465, Pre. 0011 to Landour from 25th May. 1909. to 25th July, 1909. 5670. Pte. Searle to Landour from 24th May. 1909, to r33rd

4782, 3309, 088, 2241, 1013, 2549. 2354, 2001, 4'220,

Sergt. Andrews to Jalapahar as convalescent. Corp]. Jones. Pte. Townsend. Payne. Pte. Thompson. Pte. Lilley. Pte. Woolford. l’te. Vanson to Naini Tal as convalescent. S. S, Rogers and family to Ranikhet for the sum:

iner.

July, 11109. ,Pte. Knight to Landnur from 1st June 1909, to 31st

Death.

July, 1909. Pte. Fraser killed at Riding School. 29th May, 191111. 5517, Pte. kollier to Landour from 1st. June, 1909. to 31st

9713711113751? r11 Home

11.3 1.1!. 1(11. Ii-‘1‘~0

111. g

' 11.11' .. 3. ‘1 ~ [111' (Ul‘lllll/l -I [/1 La 1 N .. 11-.3'41 _ P)we per 1'0111/ lo a111(sz.3' Prim ' [111/11 mm1'11111111L3'3-1'011ed (Ll/LL112: 11nd 7/11/L. .. 11-4-11 . rip/£01113 arm/111' in alliance ands/1011211111, .31111‘ 111 [/11 Editor. 6'0 The [(011111 111111100113 .Ill Mini/fumes 11LI! 111 111/.11011151/1/(11 in the mar! numbn-o_/'1h1'1111/111'11L1/1l1'3'l111/ 1 111 rereL‘pL Subscrihcrs chum/Lay f/IHI' mill)" 86.3, proceﬂ/my 1121. lgu 1'14 01' .lmlmmh 117' Imnim/ l/Lc JIM/£1116)“ should notify the Erlz‘lal'of [he 111'11'111/1/1'1'33 l [inli/u/ 11111111111' 11.1 bur/1 1'11pL'13' (111 1.9171 in 3101/ 11n1/1'1111he/1avi 011 app/L'uLlez 111 f/11 [11/1/111'. illc1111111111111'1'11!101L.3' L'ILlwulcvl for publiiutzmt L'LL “ ’1/11' Edy/l1" should Z11 ll'li/l/Ib ML 11sz Nillé 01' NH j)(l[1(7'1)/1l1/ 1111111733111 111 1/11 Editm'.111Lvl should/11 11L'L'11111pmzialb1/ lhz' 111'LI/1".3' 111nm 111111 1111111953. The lt'vlilm' (Hill 1101 1111.1!(11'111/1'1'1111 be I'M/11111 Ill for any I'ljerjlml 115.. 1101' lo rclill'LL any 1'01Llrib111t'0h. 111116.313 special/y desired to do so. ’ Umzer'bILIL'mLs .3‘/1,011lrIr61u'/1. the Editor ILol lolcr IhaiL 6/21) 5th of each. month. {0 WISH/'6 publication 1'11 (/1111. mom/L‘s £88111. .llmibcrs. 11(13'1 11ml 17/‘P81'llf, (1r! ir flip/111.3 are 'l'é/Z l0 01111111111» 72.501111) 10 (he [~111le- (llbjl £11111. afar/123' likely 10 be of L111 of In our THNIH'A‘. 16 has been noticwl purli [or/y that news of e JUN/106129 'L'.3' ”111111111111 with 111-1111111111 by present. Royals. (1m ch. commm aim/ions 1111-. 1/11' means «blishilm 11ml 111(1L'nlaL'ILLLLy 13/111! [1711]: Z761 11mm 11118! (l/Ul 1111.31 (/1. is the primary 011.1'1'1'1 17.1'l/1cp11/1e1'. 1711' lu‘11'il111'f111'1/1u' mules 1'1'11111r1's l0 ubmil to him (my inquiTips 11'/11'.1'/1 hr» mayhedble In 11 'u' by 1.3011 of /I(llL/U/ 1119 .3' In NH! [lmilnuztal records. 111 'LL'ill. 11. 1111'113 1111.3, ‘1/(- 111' 1161111, 11'1'1/1, llILtZH' " Jumpers (0 (.‘01'1' 110111114118. ll/Iél'k 1mm 1ry (Ire/11y

bylcltu‘ will by 311111..

July, 1909 Naini Tal from 15th

May, 1909, $014th July, 1909. ' 3o. Pte Allen to Gouda from 17th May, 1909, to 17th July, 1909.

5762, Pte. MacFarlane to Condo from 2nd June, 111011, [0 3lst July. 1909. 2"6, Pte. Burtt to June. 1909.

On the 9th of June took plat". the annual Regimental dinner, which was held this year, at the Ritz Hotel, Piecadilly. A telegram received by the Commanding Oihcer, and sent 011' 11131245 A.M. on June 10th, reads as follows :— ” Royals dining, enthusiastically remember days in Old Corps " GENERAL RUSSELL.

Bonares from 1st June,1909, to 10th

327, Pte. Gardiner to Auinala from 1st June, 1909, to Slst July. 1909. 5230,1’te. Newton to KaSuuli from 15th June, 1909. toch August. 1909. 955, PLB. Flanders to Kasauli from l5tl1June, 101111. [1) 14th August, 1909. 4342. Pte. North to Majgzion, from lst June,1909. to 1st. July. 1909.

Whilst we are writing these lines, our Colonel-in Chief‘s

representative has arrived in

Lucknow for the annuai

ceremony on June 18th, when the Regiment is presented with a wreath sent from Berlin by the Emperor William 011 this occasion His Imperial Majesty's envoy is Doctor {émy who is the German Vice-Consul at Simlu. and an nilicer in the reserve of the Bavarian Field Artillery In our next number we hope to give some account of the ceremony. ' '

9111M ED FOR THE EDITOR BY W. S. Mann, AT THE METHODIST PUBLISHING Bonsn, LUCKNOW.

\Vi: beer to a in: contcmpni' :1

owlcdirc with thanks the receipt of the follow-

st (.101% s L‘ritxctte' 'Gn/ette.

The \Vhitc Litni'c

” The X. R H

' ‘H. L. I. Clii'uniilc.’ The Mussoorii Times

The following subscriptions to The Eur/Zr have been received :— Colonol Carr-Ellison .. .. .. .. £ 0 2 " .. .. .. O Colonel Burn Murdoch " .. .. .. 0 .. Mrs. Towers-Clark " .. .. Major Balfour

”00 _. ._. ... mmoaxow—fmw o ~1

1876, Pte. Ogley to Cawnoore and

Rules/01' Arlverfis'nnén/s can be ascerlaimd on, application. In 171.11 Edi/111'.

M1-c.1313 an R. A ’l‘. A. for Ma) Cor.pl Oshorno Sergeant Rittcliffe . Coliee Shop. April and May Manora Detachment. May and June Ser vt -Instr. Collingw 0011 S air SCI neant Morgan

Bound copies of Volume II. 1908. can be had on application.

Price. Rs. 5 (£063-8d) 1101' copy.

L E. W.—Many thanks for excellent article, and for good wishes. We publish the reminiscences in present number. A copy is forwarded to your address and your name placed on list of subscribers J. G. G. »#'i.‘hank you for obituary notice. Several readers have kindly supplied details.

W. O. S.—Letter and article received

Many thanks.

Hope copies now correct

L A. B —-F10pe the falls are now but painful memo~ ries . UNATTACHEn—iio other unit is stationed at Mnttra. Just the .li'itish Cavalry regimen; The Comman ‘ing

hear is O.

Station.

whilst the

Adjutant is also Cantonment Magistrate and Station Staff Ofﬁcer ! H

'1‘. G ~When shall we see you again.‘J

The rains

have come and the grass is plentiful

MONTHLY NOTES The monsoon proper broke1n Lucknow at the end of last month, and up to the time of writing the rain has fallen almost incessantly. In two days over 7 inches were recorded. The wet season is, of course, preferable to the hot, dry period which precedes it, but it must not he thought that with the rain comes the end of the physical discomfort which we suﬁ'er by reason of the climate. It is certainly cooler in the rains, and while the rain is actually falling, the temperature is almost pleasant ; it is during the lulls in the downpour that we suffer. The atmosphere is like that of aTurkish bath, and one simply reeks with perspiration, but, curiously enough, Without feeling very hot. Prickly heat is then in its prime, and the uninitiated beholder on seeing a regiment of red~skinned and wriggling soldiers, rubbing their backs

96 against stable walls, .doorr'posts, chairs,

THE

EAGLE

etc,

splendid record of 13 wins and 3 seconds out of 20 mounts, and this in spite of being out of training The beginning of the meeting

would be apt to think unpleasant things ‘. It may be necessary to mention that prick-

1y beat, this most maddening of maladies, is caused by the overworked action of the pores of the skin due to constant perspiration.

The pores become inﬂamed and set up an awful

was postponed

THE; EAGLE

from 12th to 14th June,

owing to rain, and even then the going was extremely bad, and there were several falls. We glean the following details from

The

Asian :-~

irritation that can only be appreciated by those who have experienced it ‘. It is during the monsoon period that this makes itself most felt. Doctors tell one it isahealthy sign, but the victim of prickly heat, water—blisters or boils, (the two latter are only slightly less popular delights of the rainy season and are, too, considered signs

“The running was made by Lady Knight, joined in the second circuit by Spec and Ruislip. At the home turn Shannon Lass, beautifully ridden, came through and won.” Won 8rd race on Captain J. Gibb’s Aeolus,

of health!) will tell you that he prefers enteric

lost. 3lbs.

fever a hundred times ! Since the rains, and their attendant ills,

the lead till turning for home.

last until September, that we are not,

it will be gathered

even now that the terriﬁc

heat of the summer is gone, by any means overpowered with the joy of living. This month has witnessed the return of several ﬁrst

leave oﬁicers, and

the

1l10m'lrry.—l/Von lst Race on Mr. Connolly’s Shannon Lass, list. 4le.

“Aeolus and Proudfoot in company held

conse-

llv’ednesday._Won 8rd Race on H.

course, and Mr. Houstoun from the School of Musketry, Pachmarhi. Mr. Chapman is out from home and Mr. Cosens back from his

trip in Southern India and Ceylon. reference

With

to the lastnamed ofﬁcer, we take

this opportunity of correcting a statement made in our May number as to his bag whilst

shooting in Mysore The following fell to his glint—4 bison, 2 cheetal, one tal‘ir, 2 leopards and one tiger.

Elephantsin plenty were seen,

but none big enough

to shoot.

The bison

were all ﬁne specimens, especially two future

number,

have

reason to

In a

the

Viceroy’s Stockbridge, Sst. 121bs. “Bit of Fashion secured thelead at ﬁrst, but Stockbridge caught her at the home turn, and, splendidly ridden. drew to the front and won by one—and-a-half lengths.” Won 4th Race on Lord Francis Scott’s Plebian, 10st, 2lbs. “ Plebian wcn fromI Martini by a length.” Won 7th Race on Mr. Connolly’s Shannon Lass, 9st. 7lbs. “Pat C. and Spec made the running, but at the 2-furlong post Shannon Lass drew up and won by one-and—a-halflengths."

hope,

Mr. Cosens will give an account of his experiences after this last-named game.

.I Mr. .Charrington who took ten days’ leave in. simla for the races, has returned with the

Friday—Won 1ist Race on

Lord Francis

Scott’s Plebian, llst. 21bs. “A comfortable winner by 3 lengths." Won 3rd Race on Mauser, iOst. llb.

Saturclay.~—Won 2nd Race on Lord Francis Scott’s Plebian, 10st. 7lbs. “Won by 2 lengths easily.” Won 8rd Race on Mr. Connolly’s Blucher, 9st. 2 lbs. “A good race, won by three-quarters of a length from Sunbeam.” Won 4th Race on Lord Francis Scott’s Mauser. “Mauser got quickest away, was passed by Timothy Titus, but drew up again, and won by one—and-a-half lengths.” Won 6th Race on Captain Gibb’s Poniard. “ Poniard took a clear lead down the straight and won by 2 lengths.”

Aeolus stayed

out Proudfoot in a fine race and won by half a length.” Won 5th Race (Minto Cup) on Lord Francis Scott’s Plebian—Poniard was ﬁrst past the post, but his jockey was unable to draw his weight.

quent departure of others on second leave.

Mr. Irwin has returned from the Signalling

“Mauser won a very ﬁne race by half a length, a neck between second and third.”

Lord Francis Scott’s

Captain Lambert has proceeded home on 90 days’ privilege leave. Captain Tomkinson and Mr. Rube have gone to Bangalore, Ootcamund, and Secundra-

bad en route for Poona, whither their ponies have already been sent. Captain Tomkinson and Mr. Miles intend making up a team to enter for the Poona open polo tournament, with Captain Barrett, 15th Hussars, and Mr,

97'.

Thursday, June 25th, being the official cele— bration of the birthday of the King-Emperor, the regiment took part in a Garrison Parade

on the Brigade Parade-ground. After a. fan de joie by the Infantry, and a salute of 21 gun's by the Artillery, we marched past and returned to barracks. The 18th of June, the anniversary of Waterloo was celebrated by the presentation of a wreath from our Colonel-in-Chief to the Regiment. Last year the ceremony took

place on the maidrin behind the Ofﬁcers’ Mess, but on this occasion we paraded on the Race Course. As we mentioned in our last number the Emperor's delegate was Doctor Remy, Lieutenant in the Reserve of the Bavarian Field Artiilery, and at present acting as ViceC insulAGeneral at Simla. The regiment was drawn up in line at order at 6-45 A.M., facing the Race Stand, and in spite of the absence of so many on furlough and detachment, we turned out 320 strong and made a very good show. After inspection, the regiment formed ‘3 sides of a square‘ and Lieutenant Remy addressed us on behalf of the Emperor, after

having placed the wreath upon the Standard which was carried by 2nd - L i e u tena nt

Badger, 12th Lancers, which takes place

Edwardes and escorted by S Q. M.S. Beall,

early in September. Mr. Gough has returned from Naini Tal.

and S. Q. M. S, Timson. His speech ran as follows :—“ Ofﬁcers, noncommissioned ofﬁcersand men, —For the name

rendered by the retirement of Captain Burch

of my august master, your Colonelin-Chief, l-Iis Imperial and Royal Majesty William 1L, Emperor of Germany, I hand over to you this

We understand, Mr. Jones, whilst a member

laurel \‘ reaih which His Majesty has deigned

of the Army Service Corps in South Africa, received his commission as Quartermaster of

to present to his regiment in memory of the glorious day of Waterloo.” Major Wood then replied as follows, on behalf of the Regiment- :«— “Lieutenant Remy, Olﬁcers, non-commissioned officers and men of the Royal Dragoons, #As long as Europe exists, Waterloo will be remembered, and as long, as Waterloo is remembered, the glorious feat ofarms by'The Royals on that most gloriousday must live in

Honorary

Lieutenant and Quartermaster

T. Jones has been appointed to the vacancy

the Wei-hai-Wei Regiment,

and

when that

corps was disbanded, was appointed Emigra. tion Agent at Chifu, China. This appointment having recently expired, Mr. Jones became supernumerary and was thus appointed to

the ﬁrst Quartermaster’s vacancy. Mr. Jones is expected to join the Regiment early in the trooping season.

THE

EAGLE

T‘:HE

the memory of every soldier. The Emperor, our Colonel-in-Chief, has once again shown his

Glyn, General Godman, Colonel Morton, and Colonel Mesham. Though few of those now-

appreciation of the conduct of his regiment on that occasion, a fact for which we are all

serving will remember him, it is only a few

deeply grateful, and, Lieutenant Remy, it only remains for me in the name of the Regi»

ment to thank him for the honour he has done us. ”

The Regiment then marched past the Standard.

The attention of readers is drawn to the interesting reminiscences of Miss Wale,

which are published in the present number. Eighty years more or less consecutive service in one regiment by one family would appear to be unique, We are sure all Royals deeply

years ago since he regularly attended the officers” dinner, amongst whom he was uni» versally most popular. Lord Basing during the dinner sent word to the Colonel (General Russell) that his son had passed into the army, and requested permission that his name might be noted for a commission in the Royals. After dinner Major Von Ostertag, German Military Attache, came in. He had been dining with Mr. Haldane and the Army Council, to meet the foreign officers now in London com-

peting at the Horse Show, and he received a hearty welcome. Yours truly,

appreciate the spirit which prompted the

K. R. BALFOUR, Major.”

submission of the article, and will thank Miss Wale most heartily for her kindness.

At the Regimental dinner, held at the Ritz

Major Balfour writes as follows :— “ Dear Mr. Editor, I enclose you a list of ofﬁcers who dined at the Ritz Hotel on 9th June, and also acopy of the German Emperor’s telegram We sent a Suitable reply. The wire from the ofﬁcers at Lucknow was much appreciated, and we sent heartiest greetings in exchange It was a good muster of past and present and a successful dinner. Reference Was made to the loss the Regiment and all connected with it

had

suffered by the death

of Captain G.

Robertson, who joined just beforethe Crimea, and obtained his troop during 1859 He served on for some years after that He was Captain of the Eton boats, offered and refused a seat in the Oxford boats, and was one of the best known and hardest riders to hounds in Leicestershire in his day. His old soldier servant who came to him in ;857 was with him still when he died, and he took the deep est interest in all things and persons con. nected with the regiment. The following attended his funeral :——Captain Sir Richard

Hotel,on the 9th ultimo, the foilowingoﬁicers were present :——Major-General Russell, of Aden, C.M.G.. Major-General Dickson, C. 8., C.M.G., Colonel Lord Basing, C.B, Colonel Burn, Colonel Burn Murdoch, 0.5., Colonel Hanning Lee, Colonel Maclean, Colonel The Hon’ble H. W. Mansﬁeld, Colonel Mesham, Colonel O’Shaughnessy,

Colonel Rogers, D. S. 0., Colonel 'l‘omkinson, Colonel Morton, Major H. S. H. Prince Francis of 'l‘eck, K. C. V. 0., D. S. 0., Major Balfour, Major The Hon’ole A. HamiltonRussell, Major Makins, D. S. 0, Major Massy»Wood, M.V.O., Major Pitt, MajOr Steele, Major ’l'owersClark, Captain Burns,Captain Calvert, Captain Goduah, Captain 'l‘lie Hon’ble H. C. Guest, Captain Gurney (an Life Guards), Captain Hardwick, Captain Hardy, Captain Hodgson, Captain Leighton, Captain Tidswell, Captain

The

Hon’ble

Trench,

Captain

Walker, Captain York, Captain ’l‘royte-Bullock, The Hon’ble W. C. Egerton, Mr. Glyn, Mr. Miles, Mr. Roberts, Mr. Watson, Mr. Chapman, Mr. Hamilton-Stubber,

The following telegram was received from our Colonel-in-Chief :—— KIEL, 9th June.

EAGLE

ith kindest remembrances to all the regiment,

Yours sincerely,

CHARLES R. BURN. “Chairman, Royal Dragoons dinner,

Ritz

Hotel, Piccadilly, London, Hearty greetings to the Officers of the Royal Dragoons, and best wishes for the welMay the Royals ever fare of our Regiment.

prosper abroad and at home. WILLIAM l. R.”

Colonel Burn sends us the following _ letter :— “ My object in writing is to say that I am anxious to have the Eagle av. long as it is published, for it is always a pleasure to me to read of the doings of the dear old regiment in whichI spent so many happy years. Later on lwill endeavour to send you anything that

Ithink is likely to be interesting to the regiment for insertion, but at present my time poliis very much occupied in working up the tical organisation of East Aberdeenshire, for which Constituency 'I have been for three years the prospective Unionist candidate ‘ Itis very hard work, for my country is need Radical by heredity, and I have much to me help to back my at s Royal of the our storm the fort, but I am glad to say that to cause is making headway, and l refuse old an for le possib is it that e acknowledg

Royal to accept defeat. My son, who was born in the regiment seventeen years ago, now stands 6 feet 4 in,

and Heaven only knows where he is going to stop!

If it is decided that he is to soldier, he will 00 into the regiment in which he was born: :nd he will

keep up the average height for

which we were always well known I was very pleased to get a Christmas card from the Sergeants’ Mess, a kindly

thought on the part of the members, showing that one is not forgotten.

Colonel. ’7 Our Manora detachment correspondent is still unproductive of much in the way of news. in his last latter, dated 6th June, he says, “Owing to rain, I have nothing to tell of our doings up here. Our football team played their match in the Rampur tournament, but had to abandon the game after half-an-hour’s play, the rain turning the ground into a lake. The only other item of interest is a pony race at a recent Gymkhana, the ponies being bazar “Tats,” when our men secured 1st, 2nd and

Weather permitting, we are to 3rd places. have a shooting match with the Volunteers next Thursday. I hope to be able to give the result of this and of anything else that comes ., off, in my nextletter. IN NUBIBUS.‘ Several of our readers have kindly sent us letters on the subject of the sad death of Captain Robertson, and as each writer has some-

thing new to detail of the late ofﬁcer‘s career,

we publish them all.

General Graham’s let-

ter is hereunder given 2-— “ I think some mention should he made in The Eng 3 of the death of Captain G. M. Robertson, which occurred at his residence, No 47, LennoX Gardens, London, after a long

_ illness borne with his usual fortitu deof Charac n Captai , believe I was, he boy. Eton An ter. of the Boats. Afterwards he went to Oxford, and then joined the Royal Dragoons, serving

with them all through the Crimean campiign His He retired, I think, in the year 1Q66 death leaves live old Crimean ofﬁcers of the

regiment : Sir Richard Glyn, C:>1')ncl Sande» n man, Mr. Pepis, Major Lee, and Captai Clements.

Captain Robertson was always one of our best and most respect )d officers, 3. ﬁ ne hardy

1‘00

THE

EAGLE

soldier, and a ﬁrst ﬂight man, with hounds in any country, and well known in Leicestershire and Meath. Many friends will mourn his loss. J. G. GRAHAM, Major-General,

THE

HISTORICAL RECORD Of the First or the Royal Regiment of Dragoons, containing an account of its formation in the reign of King Charles the Second, and of its subsequent services to the present time.

Colonel Mesham’s letter is given elsewhere in this number.

By General C. P. de Ainslie.

(Continued ) The Soldiers’ Furlough Home at Landour has again this year attracted a number of our

men, and a correspondent sends us the

following in connection with the sports held there 2—“ In the Basket Ball League, The Royals met and defeated the following:—12th Lancers,

“ B," 8-0.

5-0.

Home

Staff,

9-0.

infantry

R. A, 5-0. R. H. A. 5-0. 17th Lan~

cers “ A," 5-2. 15th Hussars, 7-0. 12th Lan. cers, 5-0. This league was eventually won by the 17th Lancers “A" team, who secured the tine silver cup. The Royals were second, and were the recipients of silver medals. Our team comprised Corporal Locker, Trumpeter Parry and Privates Shurmer, Neil, and Collier:

whilst Corporals Marlow and McCormac were in reserve. The most valuable, and consequently most

coveted prize of the season was the handsome

About 10 o’clock the French army was seen forming on the opposite heights, whence a cloud of skirmishers soon sprang forward; the ﬁre « f the artillery gradually opened, and about their columns of attack came sweeping up the valley between the rival positions in all the pomp and majesty of warlike display. A succession of attacks were made at various points, while Sir William Ponsonby‘s brigade remained quietly in contiguous close columns of regiments waiting the moment when their services would be actively iequired. At length, about half-past 1 o’clock, the infantry

corps of the Count d’Erlon of 20,000 men suddenly appeared on the ridge opposite, and dashing forward with such celerity that, scarcely seeming to traverse the intervening space, they rapidly ascended the allied position;

match cue presented by John Roberts for the Billiard Tournament. This was won by Corporal Marlow who defeated Pte Latter, 17th Lancers, after a closely contested game.

dispersed at once a Belgian brigade with which

In the other games: Badminton, Ping-Pong,

through parts of the supporting British infantry, and several thousands having passed La. Haye Sainte, the French had actually

Golf,

and Quoits, Privates

Shurmer

and

Merrick were generally successful."

they had come in contact ; forced the artillerymen posted in rear of the double hedge and narrow road to abandon their

crowned the allied position.

By the time the present number Of The Eagle reaches English subscribers, the ener. geticvcommittee of the Old Comrades’ Associa. tion will be once more actively employed in the task of gathering in old Royals for the

annual reunion dinner. The date of the dinner and other particulars will, we suppose, be advertised as formerly in the English papers, but we give this timely warning to any who may be at present outside the ken of the indefatigable Mr. Finn. All information will

be supplied by him.

His addre:s is: Head

Porter’s Lodge, Gray's Inn, London, W, C,

guns ;

broke

At this critical

moment Lieutenant~G en e ral the Earl of Uxbridge galloped up to this part of the ﬁeld, and uttering a few words, the " Union " brigade deployed at once into line ; advanced, and halting for a few moments, to allow the broken infantry to retire through the intervals of squadrons, the three noble regiments led by

their gallant General dashed forward with terriﬁc violence upon the mass of the enemy’s battalions. In an instant the heads of their columns were broken and forced back, a gener

ad flight commenced, the firing ceased, and, the smoke clearing away, those imposing masses, a moment before so conspicuous and conquering, had either almost disappeared, orleft only a dispersed rabble flying in all directions. Everywhere the Royals, Greys, and Inniskillings were to be seen trampling down and sabring the fugitives with uncontrollable power, The "Eagle" of the 105th regiment of the Line was captured by Captain Kennedy Clark of the Royal Dragoons, that of the 48th by Sergeant Charles Ewart of the Greys, and 2,000 prisoners were taken in this

splendid charge.

'101

EAGLE

Unfortunately, all did not

end with this brilliant success, for the brig-

ade, encouraged and excited by their victory, followed up their advantage too far. They swept across the ravine, carried several bat. teries, and continued their wild career even to the rear of the enemy‘s position, who, recovering conﬁdence from the disorder too ap parent of the British Dragoons, now fell upon them with a large body of Lancers and The brigade, broken and some Cuirassiers was driven back pursuit, the disorganised in with heavy loss, in which was unhappily to be included that of its gallant leader, Major. General the Honourable Sir William Ponsonby, whose horse being blown, and unable to extricate him from the heavy ground of a ploughed field, the General was set upon and killed by the Lancers. This charge obtained universal admiration, and the conduct of the regiments engaged has been much com mended by historians, After returning from the charge the Royals resumed their former position, and became exposed to a heavy cannonade. The brigade, now commanded by Colonel Muter of the lnniskillings, moved later in the afternoon to the right, when Colonel Muier being wounded, he was succeeded by Lieutenant-Colonel Clifton of the Royals,

the command of the regiment devolving upon Dorville. The French Lieutenant-Colonel but continued to make the most desperate

fruitless attacks upon various points, until at

length the Duke of Wellington assumed the offensive ; the allied army made a simultane-

ous advance; the enemy gave way, were overthrown, cut down, and driven with dread ful slaughter from the ﬁeld, and the Prussian army of Blucher coming up to continue the pursuit, ended a day glorious beyond all precedent for the British arms. In his Grace’s despatch the conduct of the heavy cavalry throughout this great conflict was especially noticed. The Royal Regiment of Dragoons on this memorable occasion suffered severely. Capt. ain

Windsor,

Lieutenant

Foster,

Cornets

Magnaic and Sykes, Adjutant Shepley, six sergeants, 86 men, and 151 horses were killed; Brevet-Major Radclyffe, Captain Kennedy Clark, [.ieutenants Gunning, Keily, Trafford, Wyndowe, Ommaney, Blois, and Goodenough, with six sergeants, 82 men, and 35 horses, wounded and taken prisoners. On the following morning the allied army advanced towards Paris, and the Emperor

Napoleon abdicating on the 22nd of the month, the capitulation of the capital followed on the 3rd of July. The brigade, including the Roy. als, went into quarters at Nanterre, a small

town, seven miles from Paris, on the 7th of July, whence, on the 28th, it marched to Rouen, in which grand old city and in pleasant circumstances, it remained, until, in the month

of October, the quarters of the brigade were changed, the Royals going to Montvilliers, in the vicinity of Le Elavre, the Greys to Harileur, and the Inniskillings to Bolbec. On the 3rd of December the whole of the British troops were in motion, preparatory

to the return of a. portion to England, and the arrangements for the army of occupation to remain in France, and on the 4th the regi.

ment left Montvilliers and marched by Dieppe to Abbeville, where the head-quarters of the cavalry

were established, and where, on the

day of their arrival, the horses were drafted into the regiments destined to remain in the country. During the stay of the regiment at

102

THE

EAGLE

Abbeville, the cold was so intense that several men on duty perished during the night._

3 pot—Brush over, and get ready for the master or exercise.

The Royals proceeded to the small hamlet of

0n return—Water, brush over, put on warm bandages, and warm clothing. 7 punt—“Evening feed and bed down.

Hardingen, about four leagues from Calais. The embarkation of the cavalry went on slow 1y, until, on the 1st of January, 1816, the regiment in their turn embarked, and on the following day landed at Dover and Ramsgate,

proceeding thence to the barracks at Ipswich Where, on the 28th of the month, the establish ment was reduced from ten to eight troops, (To be continued.)

HORSE MANAGEMENT IN INDIA. BY COL. H. DE B. DE LlSLE, C.B., D.S.O (Continued)

From the ﬁrst a timetable should be arrangv ed for the stable, and after very few days it will be found that the system introduced for stable duties will work without a hitch. In the cold weather the hours observed must necessarily be different from those in the hot weather, the chief change being the hour for exercise and the hour for grooming. If the work takes place before the morning feed, horses must be given a small feed at daylight. The following time-table is given as a useful guide, which can be altered to suit the various seasons and climates :— Clean out feed (llb). Daylight.» Small stables. Sunrise.»——Saddle up and turn out for two

hours’ exercise. 02': return. ~Water, dry back, brush feet and legs and give morning feed, Bed down, put on bandages and close stables This is the time horses like to lie down and rest.

8 pot—Evening grass and close stables. In the hot weather exercise is over by 8A.M., and it is better to groom atQ A.M., as soon as the horses have ﬁnished the morning feed. To expect syces to put the same work into grooming at 12 noon during the hot weather as in the cold, is hardly fair. The stables can then be closed by letting down the chicks and leaving the horses undisturbed till 1 RM.

Having given an outline of aday’s work in a well-regulated stable, I will go into more detail, but my readers must remember that every season has its variation and every animal requires diiferent feeding and work. It is not to be expected that the owner is going to see his syces turn out at daylight, but when he does go out, he can at a glance see if the bedding has been all cleared out and spread in the sun to dry. The early feed may take the form of llb of oats, with perhaps a small handful of gram for those old horses which like gram mixed in the cats. The exercise, unless horses are on soft food

and walking exercise, should be given mounted. horses being saddled up and ridden by the syces. Most syces will say they cannot ride out ofa walk, but I have never known a syce that could not learn in afortnight, and if syces will not learn, get syces who will.

ly groom horses or ponies, and

Horses should be ridden in snaﬂies, not the bits of rusty iron sold in all bazars under the name of watering bridles, but proper English Polo snaffles, which must be kept clean. bandages, or on boots polo have should ponies as many ponies brush at exercise. I do not recommend kn ee-caps in India. On macadamised roads they may be necessary, but I

feed.

believe ponies stumble from being allowed to

11 a.m.-—Clean saddlery. 12 noon—Midday stables. Water, thorough,

THE

EAGLE

slouch along at a walk, and they cannot trot in knee-cups. The exercise is best carried out in pairs.

Horses walk up better in pairs than when following in a string, and syces like to talk and do not dislike the exercise so much. Every morning they should trot for two to four miles according to the nature of work during the preceding day. This long trotting puts on muscle and hardens the legs, making them When horses less susceptible to injuries are being brought into work from soft food, the trotting work should be gradual, and instructions be given to the jemadar that as soon as a horse sweats he must walk, trotting Towards the end of a preagain when dry paration horses should be able to trot four miles without sweating or being tired. On return to stables saddles should be removed and placed in the sun and rugs put on, care being taken that horses are not left standWhen the legs are cleaned ing unclothed and bandaged, the rug can be removed and the hack and body quickly brushed over and the Horses should be watered on rug replaced over keeps the skin brushing arrival as the warm and reduces the danger of chill to a If legs are wet they must be care— minimum fully dried and brushed, but never washed. When horses are thoroughly dry and comfortable, they should be bedded down

with

the straw that is dry, adding a little top-dress— Wet bedding should be ing if necessary. kept out to dry all day. Feed should then be given, and consist of about 2lbs, grass being added as soon as the feeds are ﬁnished. The stables should be closed for at least three hours, and no one

allowed to disturb the horses until midday stables.

Some old horses do not ﬁnish their

feeds until they have rested.

It will soon be

found out which are dainty feeders, and such should not have a big feed given at this hour,

but more at the night feed.

Syces must have two clear hours to prepare and eat their own food. If they prefer to

‘

103

clean the saddlery at once, there can be no objection to their doing so, but they must be ready for midday stables at 12 o’clock.

With animals bred in a tropical climate, like the Arab and Countrybred, no difficulty will he found in maintaining them in health and condition. With English and Australians, more care will be required during the hot weather, especially during the rains in North» ern India. This is chiefly owing to loss of digestive powers which produces slight fever or even liver troubles ’l‘o guard against this, special precautions are necessary with regard to watering, grass and feeding. Digestion depends partly on mastication of solid food, but even more on the strength of the gastric fluid in the stomach. A delicate feeder should always have his teethexamined, and if uneven and with sharp points, they should be tiled. The subiect of watering is one which is much misunderstood, and which is responsible for more horse sickness than any other. works usually dismiss this Veterinary subjectin a few words, recommending that

horses be watered before feeding and never Ido not for a moment question this after statement, but every horsemaster

requires

more information on this important subject. It is no unusual thing to ﬁnd owners holding the opinion that to water after feeding makes the grain in the stomach swell and produce colic. This is not the feet A horse has a sinallstoinachforhissize,butdrinkswithgreat force. A volume of water passing through

the stomach to the gut is liable to carry with it portions of undigested food which is apt to foment. producing gases which distend the bowels and may produce colic. For this rea son horses should never be watered within an hour of feeding on solid food. I wish also to impress . n my readers, and to emphasize it, that horses liable to liver, fever, or indiges~ tion—ln short, delicate horses. should never

be watered lU/I/Lin an hour before feeding.

104

THE

' glass of Whiskey is a strong stimulant, but if diluted with half a pint of soda or water, it has not more strength than beer, Similarly the gastricjuice is the natural and most powerful digestive, but if diluted with a bucket of water itloses its power and fails to do its duty. Fluid taken into the stomachis soon absorbed by

the capillary tissues into the blood, but the gastric juice remains in the stomach With human beings this also holds good, and we know that along drink after exercise shows itself almostimmediately on the surface by increased perspiration. Now-a-days medical experts prescribe for weak digestions by forbidding any ﬂuid at meals, but make no restrictions to the amount taken an hour before or an hour after.

1 am ﬁrmly convinced with

many horses, and especially unacclimatised Australians that injudicious watering is the

chief cause of digestive troubles.

It may be

put forward as an argument against this theory that horses in India thrive better with water always in the stable. This fact, how— ever, is for, not against this theory, for it is well known that with water in the stable horses drink less. in other words, they do not fill the stomach with such a volume of water immediately before solid food. (To be continued ) A WHITEHALL SENTRY. Some few years ago, passing through Whitehall into St. James’s Park, one could not help being struck by the presence of a sentry ”a guardsman—passing his solitary beat beforearoom in one of the many suites of offices facing the Park, of which this impos» jug pile consists. Why this particular room or ofiice, of all

the others, should have been singled out for such vigilant watchfulness by day (for, strange to say, no sentinel was posted there at night) never seemed to occur to anybody to enquire. The presence of a sentry anyWhere in London, however much it may strike the notice of the observant man, seldom seems

EAGLE to arouse his curiosity. He takes his presence anywhere—}:articularly in so official an atmosphere as Whitehall, where even the-very pigeons strut about with greater airs of importance than their more humbly environed neighbours of 'l‘::ifalgai' Square «as a matter of con "se, and passes on his way. Even the ornate grandeur and picturesque immobility of the two mounted sentinels that are a never— failing source of wonder to the juvenile throng that daily gathers round them in awed admiration as horse and man stolidly gaze outfrom the shadovs of the fabric they not merely guard but ornament, cannot stir his mind from its lethargic spirit of passiVIty.

He accepts everything as it stands and follows Tennyson‘s philosophy, “ There‘s not to reason why." Occasionally, however, ‘ the man who wants to know ' comes along, It happened, therefore, that one day Lord Wolseley. then Commandervin-Chief, happened to be passing through Whitehall into the Park on his way 10 the War Ofiice. A friend accompanied the O.—in-C., and as the pair passed through the archway into the Park, the former, rather from the wish to test Lord Wolseley’s Oniniscience in things military, than with the desire of satisfying any overweening curiosity on his own part, sud— denly asked, “ Why is that sentry there? " pointing to the gnardsniai: in the distance. Looking in the direction indicated, the Chief had to confess he didn’t know, but he Would enquire. And enquire he did, immediately he reached his office But the question proved a poeer for each and all in turn of those who formed the repository of information in such matters at the War Office. The whole thing was “wropt in mystery,” and there was nothing for it but to delve into cob-webby pigeoni holes and search among musty dust-covered records in order to find a clue, if possible, to the solution of the problem. Eventually, after much effort, and by dint of most careful scrutiny of documentary data, the riddle was solved atlast. it was

’1‘ H E

EAGLE

found that the ofﬁce before which the sen—

try patrolled, was that in which theill-fated Admiral Byng was tried by court-martial for abandoning Minorca to the French, and for

which olfence he was condemned to death and shot on board his own ﬂagship the “Monarch” in Portsmouth harbour. During the time of the trial, orders were issued for the posting of a sentry before the court-martial room, but when the court had ceased its sittings, by a singular omission, no order cancelling the preceding one was pro» mulgated. Accordingly from the. year of the trial (1750) down to 1897, when the incident referred to occurred, a sentinel was daily to be found doing his solitary walk, presumably to keep inquisitive intruders from too near an approach to a court that had ceased its site tings a hundred and forty years previously ! “ HYDE PARK. "

4‘" [6111012111.]! "

CAPT AiN GILBERT METCALFE ROBERTSON. From the fastethinning ranks of Royals who servoii in the Crimea, one more has fallen

out.

A fewlincs about the late

Captain Robertson will, I think, he welcome to the readers of The [Jug/r, some, of whom will recollect him as their coin~

without showing any regret or courtesy.

My horse was

loose,

and Robertson

riding after the offending man, caught

his horse by the bridle and said, “ Go and catch that gentleman’s horse, and show thatyouhave some manners left!" I need not say teat I was very grateful to my i.‘apl‘nin, and felt that we should become firm friends, Robertson took care that his subalterns should learn their dutie: properly. To strip a saddle, and pui it iogther again. to pack a valise pro perly, were some of my earliest lessons. and, proud himself of commanding" D ” ii'ooi , he always taught us to consider it ill-(”Viiiﬁrh troop in the regiment. And as I joined " D " troop as a Cornet, got my Lieutenancy in it. and commanded it‘as Captain, l need not say that I thought so. too. and I am sure that none of n.1- pi esent Royals will ﬁnd fault with a Robertson was that seniiment. thoroi gli sportsman. Very fond of hunting. he was for many years one of the

rade, but more as an old l-{oyal whose name was always mentioned with affection and respect The writer joined the regiment at the Royal Barracks. Dublin,

hardest ofthe many hard riders in the into M r. Tailby's hunt, and he rode many a. good race in

our i-{egimental steeple-

being posted to Robertson’s troop—for

I cannot recollect when our phasns first meeting was held, but 1 have a news-

innate because

paper repnt of the second, which was

in January. 1560, and was

fortunate in

Roberison was a keen

1863, when

and experienced soldier, and a man whom

hold at Henly-invArden in

to know, \‘as to admire and love.

Captain Robertson won the Consolation

hndjoined the Royal Dragoons in time to share in the glories and hardships of

race on “ Potheen.” And in 1864 he was third in the l-legimentnlOup race in a

the Crimea, and as a Cornet had his horse

lield of ten, when the races were held at

shot under him in the splendid charge of the Heavy Cavalry at Balaklava, when with characteristic coolness he carried his saddle and bridle back to safety. I

Nor niandy, about six miles from AlderMajor Ainslie‘s ‘Miss Arthur,” shot ridden by M r. Hutton, was ﬁrst, and Mr.

E Wynne Grifﬁths second on ‘Crick.’ A

wish that SirRichard Glyn (who, Ibelieve,

‘

would write of those long-past days, for their friendship, begun and cemented in the Crimea, was as strongand true as ever to the day of Robertson’s death. I can only tell of Robertson‘s thoroughness and kindly nature, of which the following incidentis an instance : He had gone with me to a meet of the Meath hounds at the Reisk near Dunslauglin—my ﬁrst day’s huntingin lreland. lhad jumped the ﬁrst fence, when l was knocked over on landing by some one who galloped on

shared his tent during the

campaign)

n'nerufinish was seldom seen, for four were in the air together over the last

THEWEAGLEA

'THE~EAGLE from the 6th Dragoon Guards. which Regiment

At the

he had joined in mistake for the “Royals."

same meeting Robertson was a close. se-

He left in Aldershot, 1865, being appointed to the Ayrshire Yeomanry, commanded at that time by the late Marquis of Bute. My uncle went out to the Crimea as Corporal, never had a day‘s illneSs during the Campaign, and was

fence—a wide'and deep brook.

cond in the Welter race to ‘ MISS Arthur’ on his bay mare ‘Violin’ after a neck andneck race up the straight A cripple for the last few years of his life, he was always cheerful and thoughtful for others, and to talk of his old regie ment was one of his chief delights. Few men had more friends, and few more

deserved to have them.

Siraightfor

ward, brave and true, he has left us an example which it is not easy to follow. He died at his house in Lennox Gardens, London, on June 4th, and as he was as a boy, Captain of the Boats at Eton. was it not appropriate that he should pass away on the day of Eton‘s famous annual gathering? We laid him to rest on Tuesday, June

8th, in the quiet churchyard of Ashford in Middlesex. “ And he passed content, leaving to us the pride of lives obscurely great." ARTHUR M ESHAM, colonel. l’.‘

.-..,,.,.

OVER EIGHTY YEARS‘ SERVICE IN THE ROYAL DRAGOONS. The writers father, George Wale, joined the “Royals ” at Cork in lr‘ji‘. He com, pleted (with Boy Service) over ‘24 years ; leav. ing the regiment in Coventry, lb63, on appointment to Hamilton Troop of Queen‘s Own Glasgow Yeomanry. This appointment he received through the late Sir George Camp.

bell of Garscube—then Captain Campbell of the “Royals ; ” and retained the post for it) years, retiring under the old age clause with a total service of more than 43 years.

Captain Campbell was wounded in the arm during the Crimean war. The bullet which was extracted from the wound. together with

the piece of scarlet cloth from the tunic sleeve. was preserved by the Campbell family. The “ Roy Writer‘s Uncle, John Wale, joined the red transfer was He als” two years later.

present on every parade.

"F " Troop, coming as they did, in direct collision with the Russian Cavalry, bore the impact of the attack: The horses were panic— stricken, and on dismounting, my uncle had his ear bitten off by a frightened horse He held the Crimean medal with 3 Clasps, Turkish medal, and medal for Distinguished Conduct and Bravery in the field. He was granted special permission by Colonel Wardlaw to return home full sergeant. three months in advance of the Regiment, in recognition of his services. The Regiment losta large number of horses The “Rip on the voyage to the Crimea storm in a by overtaken Van Winkle " was were chargers oﬁicers’ The Sea. the Black thrown overboard first, in order to lighten rl‘hen troop horses followed, till the ship the number reached 200 E'. On disembarking the troops were detained till fresh horses were sent out from Canterbury, My father was R. R. Sergeant at Canter— bury during the war. He was ordered out by with a draft, but the order was cancelled ColonelMcQLieen,€tlilnniskillings,Command. one to ing the Cavalry Depbt, as he had no take my father’s place. In 1638, when my father jomed, there were wearofticers and men in the Regiment Arthur Sir Colonel ing the Waterloo medal.

Benjamin Clifton, who commanded the Regiment in the Peninsula, being then Colonel. the Father remembered one occasion when who Regiment, the revisited gallant Colonel accorded him a most enthusiastic welcome

In my father's early'days of soldier-ing railways were in their infancy, and a Regi-

ment on the line of- march had to negotiate with contractors to have the‘Regimental bag-

gage conveyed by road in stages.

One cou-

tractor would convey it a couple of days” journey, then the men of the Regiment would unload it, and place it on a fresh contractor’s The wagon for transit to the next stage married women and the children, rode on the top of the baggage wagons each day, using a ladder to ascend and descend. Farmers along the route contracted for the forage, often at some distance from the town where the troop were billeted. On arrival in town, the men, after being told off to their billets, had to parade with sur-

cingles and proceed to the farm where the forage was to be obtained. In windy weather

they returned minus much of the quantity with which they started. A “ Royal " in those days had to pay for the

greater portion of his kit, and when a recruit joined he was put under stoppages for a numnah, and had to provide all his cleaning requisites.

In those times a soldier’s clothing had to last a much longer period than now. The walking-out uniform was a stable jacket, white duck overalls, forage cap and highlows. Very few men availed themselves of the privilege of aSunday afternoon or evening outing as helmet, gauntlets and belts had to be worn. After 1860 this order was countermanded. A very old photograph represents my father in a stable jacket with wonderfully tight sleeves, a very much tightenedin waist, and a large cap with a broad, nigh crown, narrowing towards the head.

A soldier, when leav-

ing, was allowed to retain his helmet. M y father‘s is at present at Great Gransden, Cambs. The “ Royals at this time Wore scarlet

cloaks with plain brass buttons.

The bands-

men were the last to discard the cloak in Dublin in 1860. The troopers also wore the chabmque—same as otlicers’-—but worked in

yellow cotton instead of gold lace. This gave the regiment an imposing appearance in Review Order. The comfort of the married portion of the Regiment was not taken into account. Each unknown. ‘Married quarters were

married couple lived in a troop-room, an end of which was temporarily screened off and allotted to their use The men occupied the larger portion. Promotion went slowly in those days, and there were not the same advantages available

to the soldier for advancing himself that exist to-day. The soldier had to wait and content himself till his superiors deemed it expedient to advance him. Education was at a premium then. The Army Schoolmaster had not yet arrived. Any education—other than what the soldier already possessed—must be obtained by his own effort and private study. No provision Was made for his advancement mentally, beyond his own endeavour. Among the many recruits who passed through my father’s hands was Mr. Archibald Forbes, the eminent War Correspondent to the Daily News. Mr. Forbes joined “the Royals" in Coventry, but left afew years later to take up journalism.

My eldest brother, Augustus Wale, joined My the “Royals " in 1877, and left in 1886. the joined youngest brother, George Wale, “Royals " in Edinburgh in 1873 and left in 1885 at Dundalk.

My cousin, Robert Wale, joined the “ Royals " in 1870, leaving in Dublin, l882. The foregoing shows a total service of over s, eighty years by the Wale family. Brother born in sister-cousins and myself were all the “ Royals ”

‘

Locrsn ELENE Wane,

Other of our readers {may have recollecWe tions of the above interesting type gratebe will such any that need hardly say fully received '—Editor.

108

THE

EAGLE

109

THE'EAGLE

On the 18th we passed acampof the S. A. C‘ andalso saw Barton’s Column of Imperial Yeomanry, and Cameron’s. Next day we arrived at Vlakplaats, where there are larO‘e pine woods. Here were encamped son;

Barton’s Column was lying about six miles further up the valley ; they sent the following message by lamp :w “ Boers very active here. Come in closer to-morrow ” ; so to-day we have

The evening was further enlivened by a few songs, andavery pleasant time was spent. The whist drive winners were as follows :—

marched up the valley and camped near

Having rejoined the Regiment on the 1st

“Greys " and “Carabineers ” of Allenby's

instant, we marched towards Middelburg.

Column. Still going “ Westward Ho ! ” we arrived at Welverdiend and there we found Dickson's

Barton's Column. They had a brush with the enemy yesterday and had several casualties. About sixty Boers who retired in front of us last night escaped through the Nek here. The enemy’s ﬁres are visible on the opposite side of the valley under the berg. They are repor ted to be 2,000 strong under Kemp, and strongly entrenched, so there ought to be something “ to go " in the near future.

“ 2nd "

{SOUTH AFRICAN LETTERS. HEKPOORT, TRANSVAAL, . DEAR M,

3lst July, 1901.

Sniping went on from Boers hanging round our ﬂanks and rear until we reached Rockdale on the 3rd. Charlie Grattage was shot dead on outpost duty on the morning of the 2nd. 1 was on outpost, too : there was a beast of a fog on. Camped north of Middelburgon the 4th, turned out on 7th to make a night march about twenty miles to a Beer liiager, but after going about six miles, were recalled# some said because the Boers had shifted, others that the Boers were too strong. knew we were coming, and were laying up for us.

Leaving Middelhurg on the Em and camping at Olifants River that night we arrived at Ba‘. moral on the 10th, after another noctuiv

nal wild-goose-chase after the elusive Boer. Next day we passed the graves of the men of the 94th Regiment. now 2nd Battalion. Con. naught Rangers. killed on December 18th. 1880, at Bronkerspruit. ii We camped near Diamond Hill on the 12th and marched through Pretoriaon the llIh, camping on the west side and receiving drafts and remonnts. Marched again on the 16th with two guns of the 66th R. F. A. and

Force, Scottish Horse, B L. H, and Infantry recuperating after their ‘scrap ’ at Vlakfontein. Taking ever more remounts and dropping the dismounted men iWelverdiend being a

station on

the

Pretoria-Klerksdorp line,)

we moved out again on 28rd. arriving about noon at Wit-Koppie on the t’ochefstroom» Ventersdorp Road. A reconnaissance in the evening gave no results, but next day we chased a party of Boers with two wagons of ammunition and took the wagonswthe escort fired and bolted. Made a night march on 25th from Klerkse kraal, and surrounded some woods wherea laagor was reported—drew a blank.

Horses did about seventy miles in thirty six hours. Next day went out on reconnaissance : saw nothing, but got bogged coming back, and had

wade

about half-a-mile up

our

knees. Another

reconnaissance on the 27th : saw

passed over very rough country and had awful

many Boer families living in their homes round here. (Mooi River district.) Marched back to Welverdiend on the 28th

camping grounds strewn with big boulders.

and received more remounts

Saw traces of Boers on the 17th, and came in touch with a party north of Banks Station ; they left one behind dead.

up to 43 horses. Leaving again next day, we arrived at Hol— fontein after dark; hall'Aa-dczen Boers re tired in front of the advance guard.

apom-pom-

During the following week we

We had a long train of

baggage and several

marching towards

women,

were

Pretoria, with no suspicion of

another

long

My troop made

march

yesterday

through hilly country near the Magaliesberg mountains and had aflanking patrol of four

hostilities, and as they were passing through Bronk-

ers Spruit, they were ﬁred into, and in a. few minutes more than half of them were killed ’7—E‘rlmct from Manchester Courier, September 30th, 1899

men captured on the right. about. It was

dark

again

Saw a few Boers

before we camped.

Yours, etc,

OLxOL:

SERGEANTS’ MESS NOTES. As is to be expected at this period of the year, there is not much to record either so— cially or professionally in connection with the Mess. Life is horribly uneventful, and only that one or two

members contrive to

work up a little energy occasionally, sufficient to organise some amusement or other. we should all develop liver and bad tempers. The rain forbids the use of the tennis courts,

and billiards is made unpleasant by the mon» soon ﬂies which, attracted by the lamps, buzz over the cloth and com mit suicide in dozens on the table. Anything requiring the slightest physical effort brings immediate punish. mentin the shape of prickly heat, whilst a drink of any description instead of merely quenching one's thirst and soothing one's body, ire-opens the inflamed pores of the skin and produces an agonizing irritation and a fearful and wonderful flow of bad language. However. since it is a somewhat paradoxical

fact that asoldier is only happy when he has something to grumble about, I suppose we :, are really having a very good time! On the 23rd ultimo, we held a whist drive to which the members, with their ladies, of

the other messes in the station, wereiinvited.

ist Prize. Ladies—Scent Bottle... Mrs. Allen. “ “

Emits—Watch Ladies—Pin Tray Gents-Inkstand

Conductor Maher. Mrs. Edwards. Colour-Sergeant Brisbane, H. L. I.

A billiard handicap has just been concluded in the Mess, and afforded some considerable entertainment to the members. Games were of 250 up, and the results were as follows :— lst Prize. Billiard Cue Gold Ornament " 2nd 3rd

Walking Stick

. Sergt. M. 1‘. Simpson. Vanson. “ S.Q 51.5. Norton.

Sergeant Scott was beaten in the semi-ﬁnal round after a most determined effort, and

only that he was very heavily handicapped, woul probably have won the tournament. Alex. Taylor, the English billiard professional, is staying in Lucknow at present, and a match was arranged between him and Sergeant Vanson, the latter to receive half points in 750 up. Unfortunately Taylor was unwell, and although the game started, the professional could do no good, and both players reached the 200 mark almost level when Taylor asked to be allowed to withdraw. The Mess team has played a few games of hockey of late and have acquitted themselves well. Notable instances are, their two games against Oﬁicers and Sergeants, R.A., when our team was successful by 12—3 and 4—0 respectively. i am sorry to have to report the serious illness of Sergeant Allchin, who is at present in hospital in Naini Tal. We all wish him a speedy recovery. Of the furlough men only Rapkin has sent us any news from home. He tells us of his Major McNeile’s wedding, attendance at ‘Willie‘ Brown, Stewart, and Davis being

also present.

He Speaks also of Mr. Thom p»

son, who is‘now “mine host” of the “Jenny Lind” at Hampton, ’l‘om King, JaCk Abbott and Cha' Cooke. He met Mr. Plumb at the tournament, but could not get tickets for the

TH E IIE‘AGIill

good time. . ' * R.S.M. Allen, Bandmaster Bolt, R.~Q.M.S. Cronin, and Sergeants Ratclil‘fe and’Scott visited Muttra a few days ago to take bean ings, so to speak, of our new station. They were most generously entertained by the members of the 15th Hussars Mess who turned out in force, and put an enthusiasm into their welcome, which, while being appreciated, nevertheless was not cheering, signifying as it did that Muttra. must be a wildly exciting place for the visit of a few members of another regiment to cause such a. stir 1 Our men were not considerably impressed

with the place. The barracks are very old and in bad condition, and there is not a gar.

434% Pte. North to be Unpaid Lee—Corporal.

720. “. Driver 5521‘ “ Pritcbard "‘» McKay

do. do. do.

Certificates. Sergeant Thomas passed in MapArcading. 4300, Pte. Maokie passed Group 1, lst Class certificate of Education. 1376 " Ogley passed Group 1, 1st Class certificate of Education. Williamson awarded Shoemaking certificate, Clark awarded Nursing certificate. Hart do. do. Happt‘l‘ do. do. “ Fitz'a‘erald do. do.

“(a

For the remainder he is, he says, havmg‘a

5....

Horse Show, owing to the enormous‘d‘emand.

a: alwroﬂ' :7.._‘_1/1 Q w c. b‘hwlu

k1‘10

1-}.i'uminatkms. Major H. D. McNeilc passed (Q 1) 15th April.1000. Lieut. W.H. J. St. L. Atkinson passed examination in Transport duties. u G. P.1'1.Cosens passed in subject (d) lst March 1000.

The Editor, “The Eagle,” The Royal Dragoons, Lucknow, India.

Mum‘s.

den in the lines. There is, however, no doubt about the place as a sin/air centre. Within a mile from barracks some of our representa— tives put upalarge herd of black buck and several hares, whilst the River Jumna which is within two miles of the lines is, I understand, teeming with crocodiles. However, I shall shortly be able to discourse of these things with certainity. “SERGEANT.”

F EGIMENTAL GAZETTEE. London. Gazette.

Promotions and Appoinlmcnts.

5 495, Unpaid Lee -Corpl. Whittingham to be Paid LanceCorporal. 5898, Unpaid Lee -Corpl. Edwards to be Paid LCl-.-C('I;pl. do. , Troke ,, 5340

do.

Reading

5111, Pte. Ranking to be Unpaid Lee-(Iorporal. do. ' do. Cowley . " 087

983

“

Edwards .

do.

I enclose herewith

“rig.

monthly copies of “ The Eagle.”

5054. Lce.—Corpl. Reading passed with credit course n]instruction in Transport duties. 5405.11;e.-Corpl. Shackell passed with credit course of instruction in Transport duties.

07‘ subscribers, and. forward camps to .'

I‘ll/I'lOlLl/h and Lea re. Capt. H. McL. Lambert,101thly. 1900, for ninety (lays to England. “ and Adit. H. A. ’i onikinson, 2nd July, 1000, for three months in India. Lieut. W.H.J. St. L. Atkinson, 17th July, 1900, for ninety days to England. “ R. Houstoun. 17th July, 1000, for sixty days to England. l-l.Jump, 15th July to lst September, 1000, in lndia, End-Lieut. EA. R. Rube 2nd July, 1900, for three months in India. Pensions. 3257. Sergt. 'Weston granted diem for life.

pension of 20% pence

Births. Wife of Corp]. S. S. Arnold, of a daughter.

PRIN’lED FOR THE EDITOR BY W. S. MEEK, AT THE METHODIST PUBLISBINU HOUSE, LUCKNOW.

Name

ﬂddresst.

Transfers,

per

for

Please place my name on the list

Courses.

3330, Sergeant Clapcott from Unattached List.

lst Dragoons.— End-Lieut. H. Jump to be Lieutenant rice C. R.’1‘idswell promoted, lst April, 1000. lst Dragoons—2nd-Lieut. (on probation) E. A. R. Rube to he ind-Lieutenant, May 15th,1900. 1st Dragoons.—er. and Hon. Capt. I“. Burch retires -_'_ retired pay: supernnrnerary er. and Hon Lient '1‘. Jones. to l~e Quartermaster nice Capt, F Burch (June 5th).

5084

Sir, Sergeant Thomas to Naiui ’l‘al as sick transfer. 079, Pm. Price do. do. 5853 “ Whyte do. do. 5210, B’man Pearce to Bombay, to join the Governor<Gnn~ eral of Bombay’s Band. 5314, Lce.~Corpl. Fitzwalter to England to join the Home Establishment.

the ~agle. GOONS. A MONTHLY CHRONICLE OF THE ROYAL DRA “ SPECTEMUR AGENDO.” N.

MONDAY, AITGUS’J‘ win, 1909.

VOL. III.

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS.

EDITORIAL NOTICES.

WALLY.7Thanks for letter. Ll‘t'Kxow. leA,

“down under."

AUGL's'I'. lilon.

OLD

INF (In/mm

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of the follow\\' l“, lit-«g to th‘IIllU\\’ll€tI,L"l‘ \\'iih ihunlis the receipt

ing (11111011le 'ill‘l\‘\':**

will

continue to

DUIL7Your

informant

undoubtedly

meant

" Warhurg” and not “ Wynberg " A serving member could hardly have the clasp for “farbore, a the battle took place in 111301 See

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Supposed you to you

send u: news. Wish you luck. I’osI fr; 1

uxj'uIIn/rx [.7, Air/lisz'ri/‘lious In “ ’1'!” HIM/Ir" z/rr Suhxm'ilm's 11’ 1mm». [H'I' (1/111 um " " India ' ' Wm (11H! mm l :11 [101/71 . ) I , at._ ling/Ills): {In Int/in

Hope

" Monthly Notes.” .\1 ~e'l‘he Royals

were

twice stationed

in Shorncliil'e, the ﬁrst time being for a year M33. although, as a. meter of fact. only three at Brightroops were present. the Others being ton.

J, 11. D

Many thanks for letter and cuttings.

The

to make latter are inlcresting. and we hope Hope you will shortly be doing use of them,

better. DONNY iThanks for nice letter

All old friends

send regards,

many “7. G. (lewe publish the cuttings. for which thanks we believe E. G. B -—$eptemher loth is the date

MONTHLY NOTES. Such “The rain it raineth every day.” have been the Weather conditions in Lucknow since lust we Wrote, ‘tnd present indications suggest a continuance of these conditions. deDull. damp, rainy weather is somewhat

pressing to the human being all the world

" ’l‘ho \Vhile Lulu-or." " The X. R H.

over, and this is not less true 016 India than

l’ Times." ” Army (ln'm'iH‘J' " H. L. I. Clironirlo.” “The I\‘Ill.\SUUl'l

marked of England, but here, in a rather more

Son ire (‘orlis Journal."

degree. it has its compensations. Quite a partirom the beneﬁt conferred upon smal t cultivators to whom not infrequently drough keeps rain uous contin means death, this down the excessive heat and makes life dur ing the latter part of the summer more The atmosphere is certainly of endurable

" Si «morn-0‘s Unzmic.‘

following MilisL-rimions in TM Svrgvunl-B’lnior Brooks

[CI/(II! have luwn rccoiu‘d: 7

I’rusidvnl Ul'riL-crs‘ Fnhwriptions our Mess ('UITUA‘ Shoo. .llHlC Solos

ll. A.'l‘,;\.

run he lIiLLI on upplit'ution. Bound copies of Volume II. 190$, Ir’riu‘. 11s. 3 (flu-UN-NI) in‘r tom".

119

T H E

E A (4r L E

T HE the “moisty warm" variety. and this is particularly so during the brief periods be tween the falls, but generally the thermometer records a very appreciable drop, and whilst the rain is actually falling the air is positively cool. Dwellings are, however, very

damp, and it is found necessary to burn ﬁres in the

rooms to combat the

heavy

green

mould which makes its appearance upon furniture, clothing, etc, particularly upon saddlery and upon one’s boots. Our fashionable ailment, prickly heat,

is,

we are happy to say, gradually becoming less fashionable as the comparatively low

temperature continues. and soon. it is to be hoped. the overworked pores of our longsuffering bodies will resume their norma1 action. and free us from not only the physical irritation. but also from the mental discom— fort of appearing like victims of measles I Toa certain extent rain interferes with

work here far more than it does at home, for in this country there are no covered ridingschools, this part of the training taking place in open manéges. At present, therefore, "no parade ” is a frequently recurring trumpet call, and horses have to be exercised at any time during the day when Jupiter Pluvius can be caught napping Nevertheless much good work is being

got through.

while preparations for our approaching relief are making us quite busy. Major Makins returned from England and assumed command of the regiment on tte 1st instant. Major Wood thus relieved pro-

ceeds home shortly on two months’ leave. Mr. Charrington has taken two months‘ leave in India. Mr. Atkinson has gone home on 90 days’ privilege leave andis relieved as Signal-

Our detachment at Naini Tal seem to be having their share of bad weather, rain and mist effectually puttingastop to all efforts

in the sporting line

They have, however,

between the showers managed to ﬁnd time for occasional out-door amusement. We quote from our correspondent--~"Sports have naturally been greatly handicapped by the weather, but two successful gymkhanas have

taken place under the management of Capt. Sandbach. Not the least popular item of these has been the Depot Stakes open to non-commissioned officers and men riding bow? ﬁde “ bazaar tats. " In each case our men have proved successful We have entered two teams for the six~a~side football tournament now in progress and one for the Secretariat Cup commencing in the middle of

August.

Our teams played the ﬁrst tie of the-

former on the 8rd of this month, A team beating the Diocesan School, and H team suffering defeat at the hands of the H. L. I. hand. On July Blst a “Khud ” race took place over about 173 miles of country, which was won in good time by Corpl. Rising, Ptes. Ashford and Duckwortli being 2nd-end 3rd respectively.

“ SHIKAREE" writes as follows :——" Nothing of interest as regards Lucknow occurs to me this month Besides beingthe close season for most game the rains have converted many

Captain Hodgsnn

places into marshes, or else the bare mi‘ii-

on return from long leave home has assumed

dans into grassy prairies, making it impossible to ﬁnd any game worth shooting. Reports reach me of very fair quail shooting on the other side of the Guinti, out as these

ling Oﬁicer by Mr. lrwin. command of “B ” Squadron.

Mr. FitzGerald

has replaced Mr. Gough at the detachment camp, Naini Tal.

little birds require such good shooting the .gameis hardly worth the candle for most regimental sportsmen.

'l‘hejlteels are, of course,

all nicely full, and there is every promise of a fine duck season twhich. alas! we shall not be

here to enjoy), and already the snipe and snipets ore disporting themselves in large numbers over the liooded, grassy country. Still we must look l'orwaid to Muttra which can best be described as a b‘hikaree’s Para— Buck are dise, if reports speak truly. so plentiful, it is said, that they feed in camp; in fact a station order is in force prohibiting the shooting of these animals in cantonment limits, so I suppose all we shall have to do will be to drive a few out and select the nicest, shoot it, and briugltback—practic» ally "dinners while you wait’ Of other game, nilgai, hare, partridge rboth brown and black), geese, duck, teal (in the season), pigeon, etc , are there in thousands. The Juznna is running over with crocodiles (we can soon all have our crocodile Gladstone bags and our

crocodile-skin boots), and the whole is noted for its pig,

country

so 1 think we can look

Our ‘ Old forward to a fairly good time. Isaac ’ is still growling about the unsuccessful times of late, but is pretty

Later reports tell us that the winners in the ﬁrst Gymkhana were Private Knight. lst and Pte. Lannen 3rd. in the second meeting all three places were secured by our men in the following order :VCrll‘pot'al Gellately lst, t’te. Wolfe 2nd, Pte. Maynard 8rd. We hear also with much pleasure that our “ A " team won the six-a-side football tournament.

EAGLE

113

ofadhiry wept by his grandfather during the campaign. Colonel Johnstor married Lady Cecilia West, eldest daughter of Lord de la Warr. He rose to the rank of General, became Governor of Quebec, and died in 1797, his remains being interred in Westminster Abbey. The diary in question was kindly lent to GeneralAinslle when compiling his Regiment» al History, and could it be again borrowed, its reproduction in The Eagle would doubtless prove of great interest. Sergeant-Major "' Donny ” Brooks, in forwarding subscriptions, writes as follows :— “ Itis a great pleasure to follow up the doings of the old Regiment, and although to old soldiers, like myself, the names are no longer familiar, yet the system under which we were "schooled " appears to he the same: and thw high standard which brought the Regiment to the front rank of British Cavalry Regiments appears to be more than maintained The valuable and interesting articles of Colonel Tom kinson, and other old Royals, bridge over the years and bring back many happy memories of the days gone by."

full of yarns

of what has been and what is going to be caught at Muttra, and tells me the only ﬁsh worth catching in india, can be caught there,

‘the mighty mahseer, ’ and he is already making arrangements for a new outtit of spinning

tackle and liycasts for this fish alone. Well, let us hope Muttra is as good in this respect as reports make it out to be. We shall not grumble if it is only nearly as good."

ss Can any ofour readers tell us the addre enant Lieut of son grand a ton, Johns Major of Colonel Johnston, Colonel of the Royal Dra_ goons during the Seven Years' War, com. manding them at the Battle of Warburg, recently added to our battle honours? Major

Johnston is understood to be in possession

Colonel Tomklnson asks us to draw the attention of readers to the sad case of Mrs. McNay, widow of Squadron Sergeant-Major McNay. Since her husband's death, over nineteen months ago, Mrs. McNayhas suffered a severe illness, which has resulted in the What little amputation of both her legs. money her husband left her has been expended in her nursing, and it is to help her in this respect, that the present appeal is made The Regiment will forward a contribution, and perhaps some old Royals may be glad to offer a little help. Contributions may be sent to Mrs Harwood, 19, Harwich Road. Colchester.

The following extract from a letter written by Mr. G. P. (Joe) Baldock, an old Royal, now

114‘

THE

EAGLE ’I‘ H 14}

in Canada, will be found of interest :— * * “I am pleased to hear that all the boys are doing well in India. I sometimes wish I had gone to that country with the old ‘mob,‘ but then I should not have seen Canada, and this is a fine country. The winter is very cold, but for a healthy man who is not afraid of work, there is good pay. I sometimes hear

from ‘ Tap ’ Johnson, who is out here in the North—Vilest Mounted Police at a place called Red Deer. I think of taking a run out to see him this fall Do you remember the great ‘ Sherlock ' Holmes? He was a shoeingsmith in the police here, but got invalided. Give

my love to all the old South African pals, although I guess there are few now in the regiment." The racing season proper may be said to have commenced with the meeting at Bangalore during the ﬁrst week in J uly. This was followed a week later by a four days‘ meeting at Secunderabad : after which the Poona season commenced on July 31st, and will continue to occupy the attention of race-goers until the end of September. The Regiment are at present represented by Captain Toni— kinson and Mr. Rube, and later on Mr. Miles is expected to join them at Poona from home. Up to the present they do not appear to have

enjoyed the best of luck, Captain ’I‘omkinson having ridden three "seconds" at Bangalore. one of which was on Mr. Miles’ Idle in the Bangalore Chase. The following details are

taken from the Racing Calendar of August

Mr. E. Rube’s b. a. h. Nettle ...... .. 9—6. Southall, unplaced. Pong Scnrry— Polo Ponies. 3 furlongs.

Lt-Col. J. Desaraj—Ur’s ch. aus. to. [moretia, 11-0,

Captain 'l‘omkinson .....

..‘2.

Winner “won by 5 lengths, half a length between 2nd and 3rd. “ Arab Pony Scu'r-r'g/«A rab Polo Ponies. 8 furlongs. Major Tiluey’s gr. 3.. h. Panch . .. ..10»T, Captain Tomkinson . . .. .. ..2.

Winner "’ Won by 3 lengths, half a length between 2nd and 3rd." At Secunderabad the following week Cap. tain Tomkinson had t\vo winning mounts and was four times placed, Mr. Miles‘ Idle and M r. Rube‘s Nettie being the tWo winners. The following details are taken from the “ Asian ” :— July Hurdle Race— 1 .l- miles over (5 flights. Mr. W. T. Miles‘ ch. ans. 2. Idle. 11-1, Captain Tomkinson ..... ..J, “After the ﬁrst half—mile idle drew to the front and was shortly joined by Ugly. The pair raced abreast till after the last hurdle, when Idle drew away and won by ﬂtlengths.” Arab Polo Hale—2:1; l'urlongs. G. R‘sv Mr. Rube‘s b. a. h. Nettle. ll-l, Captain Tomkinson ........ 3. “. . ..half a length between 2nd and 3rd." Trial Plate—5 furlongs. M r. Rube‘s Chassepot, 10-4, Captain Twirl .3. kinson.. “Won by :5— length, two lengths between 2nd and 8rd ”

Arab Polo Handicap—2:15 furlongs. Mr. Rube's Nettle, 10‘5, Captain Tomkinson...... ..1. “Within the distance Nettie showed out and gradually increasing his distance, won by two lengths. Farewell Handicap— M r. Rube’s Chassepot, l0, unplaced.

11.5

cious message, by which the ofﬁcers were» much moved and deeply grateful. Also, as regards the absurd story quoted by the same German newspaper, that ade monstration took place before the picture of the Emperor in the mess-room at the time of the Kruger telegram. I can only say that

this report was authoritatively contradicted at the time, and is an entire fabrication.

The following is taken frr m the Daily filo/l. of June lith, 1909'.— “The Kaiser telegraphed to the English lst Royal Dragoons, of which he is Colonel-inChief, as follows on the occasion of their annual regimental dinner :—‘Hearty greet ings to the officers of the Royal Dragoons, and best wishes for the welfare of our regi. ment. May the Royals ever prosper abroad and at home. ’ " Commenting on this message, the Hamburger 1Vﬂt‘ll'l‘lt1/Lli'n says :—“ The sending of such atelegram in the present situation is remarlr

FRANCIS RUSSELL, (ll/trio?“General, (Lionel, [loyal Dragoons.) "

tn the situation at present existing between the two nations, it seems

unfortunate that a

section of thePress should endeavour by such malicious fabrications to thwart the efforts of those who are working to promote a better understanding between Great Britain and Germany. By a recent Army Order the Regimenthave been granted the privilege of bearing on their standard and appointments two honours——

ble ; and we miSs, too, any answer from the “Tangier,

English officers. The corps which is congratulated is the same which at the beginning of 1895, at the time of the telegram to President Kruger, made the notorious demonstration in the mess-room before a picture of the Kaiser. The present telegram goes far beyond the proper bounds of polite congratulation. " Below we print Major—General Russell's reply :w“ 'I‘o the Editor of The, [Au/y Mail.

.bb‘ilbbd,” “ Warburg "—in addi.

tion to those already borne.

Those who have '

studied the History of the Regiment, published in instalments in these pages, will not need to be reminded o! the excellent services performed by the Royal Dragoons in North Africa immediately after their formation in 1661, and nearly hundred years later in the Seven Years’ War at Warburg :—services for which these honours have been deservedly granted. How‘ ever. it is l'elt that in view of the importance of the

b‘iit,——.\ly attention has been called to an 5th :—

n A (i it it

occasion, some account of the

Regi-

ment at ’I‘angier and also at Warburg will not

Grand .inmlal Hand/cap Hurdle [face—‘2 miles. extract

Maclnlire Plate—G furlongs. Mr. W. T. Miles‘ ch. ans. g. Idle.. .....‘Southall, unplaced. Bangalore Chase—2 miles. Mr. W_T. Miles’ch. aus. g. Idle ...... 12-5,

Captain Tomkinson.. . . . . ‘2. The winner, Ugly, “won by Elengths easily.

Mr. W. T. Miles’ Idle, 11-8, Captain Tome 2. kinson.. “Whisper stayed out a ﬁne eﬂ‘ort by Cape tain Tomkinson on Idle in the run home and won by % length.” Sundown Park Plate -7 furlongs. Mr. Rube’s Chassepot, 9‘43, houthall 0

a length and a half between 2nd and 8rd. " Pony Selling Plate—4 furlongs and under.

Arabs 14-1

Arab Welter Plate—5 furlongs. Mr. Cook’s Betty, 10-5, Captain kinson ........ 8.

Tom

from

the

Hamburger

Nachrzchten,

quoted in your issue of J une 11th, to the effect that no reply was despatched to the telegram of congratulation sent by the German Em< pet-or to the ofﬁcers of the Royal Dragoons on the occasion of their annual dinner. As full colonel of the regiment and chairman on that occasion, Iwrite to say thata suitable and grateful telegram was at once despatched, thankinghis Majesty for his gra—

be out of place, more especially as the Regi-

mental History contains anything bnt afull account of the battle fought at the latter place. 'llangier was part of the dowry brought to Charles II. by his marriage with the Infanta of Portugal, Donna Catherina. It was necessary, therefore, to raise troops for the de— fence of this place, especially as Charles II

116

THE

EAGLE

had ideas of extensive conquests in North Africa. For this purpose a troop of Horse and four regiments of Foot were raised. and the troop of Horse formed the nucleus of what afterwards became the Royal Regiment of Dragoons. They were raised in the autumn of 1661 and arrived in Tangier, January, 1862. Frequent encounters with the Moors ensued and lasted on and otf for seventeen years.

During the whole of this period the troop of Horse

behaved with the greatest gallantry

and performed many brilliant feats of arms, becoming greatly celebrated for their gallantconduct. The Moors were no mean opponents, being excellent horsmen and skilful in the iise of lance and sword as well as beingr armed with short muskets. But the troop of Horse more than held their own, and on one occasion brilliantly captured a scarlet standard which

they

had

been

ordered to secure from

Broglie, the French Commander, inflicted a defeat on the allied army at Corbach. A fortnight later the tables were turned and a bril. liant victory at Einsdorﬁ', where the 15th Light Dragoons, now the 15th Hussars, gained the highest distinction, gave great conﬁdence to the Allies. This led Marshal dc Bi'oglie to commence that series of operations which eventually culminated in the fight at Wai'burg, Dividing his army into three bodies he threat.ened the Allies in front and on both flanks; and sent the Chevalier de Muy across the river Diemel to Warhurg in order to cut the

THE-

EAGLH

and gallantly charging the French infantry drove them in confusion across the river Diemel. The cavalry of the ﬂanking columns joined in and the Royal Dragoons encountered the Cavalry Corps of the Royal Piedmont, afterwards cl‘ntrging a corps of Swiss infantry from whom they took twenty ofﬁcers and

two hundred men prisoners. Three troops followed the Marquis of Granby across the Diemel in pursuit and three more, who had suffered somewhat in the charge on the infantry, remained at Warburg. The regiment lost three men and twenty-one horses killed, thirteen men and thirteen horses wounded.

Allies’ communication with Westphalia. Prince Ferdinand sent considerable reinforcements to his fortified base at Cassel, which was being threatened by de Broglie, and with the remainder of his army prepared to

HISTORICAL RECORD Of the First or the Royal Regiment of Dragoons, containing an account of its formation in the reign of

117

of Anglesey, K.G., with the memorandum it

inclosed, contained Captain Clark’s statement of this affair :w Noawmn, 101/; June, 1817.

" M y Loan, " lam induced by the interest you have in— variably taken in these officers who have had the advantage of serving under your Lordship’s command, though personally unknown, to address you under the follownig circum. stances I had the honour to serve under your Lordship‘s orders at the battle of Waterloo, Where [commanded 1he centre squadron of the Royal Dragoons in the brigade of the late Sir W Ponsonby. While performing this duty, 1 perceived, and led my squadron against an enemy’s " Etgle,” the bearer of which (an officer; 1 ran through the body, in conse-

King Charles the Second, and of its subsequent services to the present time.

quence of which the “Eagle" of the mom Regi—

on aplateau with his right flank on Warhurg and his left on the vi lage of Oahsendorf on

By General C. P. de Ainslie.

ment was iitken, it falling across me against the horse of Corporal Stiles. i ordered him

higher ground. Satisﬁed that de Eroglie could

CHAPTER VI.

deal with de Muy who had taken tip a position

(Hoiiiiitucd ) to carry it at once to the rear, which he diJ,

the midst. of the enemy. At this time. 1664. a. whole Moorish army Was hesieging Tangier, the encminters up to then having only been with isolated bodies of the enemy and more in the nature of raids than of pitched battles against large armies. Later on, however, the English suffereda severe defeat. as the oﬁicer commanding the force was led by false information too far into the interior and a massacre was the result.

In 1679 reinforcements arrived from l‘omO in the shape of four more troops of Horse ; and the Moorish army was

utterly

not interfere with him, Ferdinand desptitched two columns along parallel routes under his nephew, Hereditary Prince of Brunswick, and General Sporke. These two columns were to attack the French on the left ﬂank at Ochsendorf, whilst Ferdinand himself intended to cross the Diemel at Lichen-an. swing round to the left and attack de M uy in front. The Royal Dragoons formed the advance guard of the northern flanking column under the Hereditary Prince.

while i remained in command of my squadron. H. R, d. the Commander-in-Cnief has

TAKING on THE EAGLE BY

been pleased to reward the corporal with an

CAPTAIN KELVNEDY CLARK AT VVATERLOO. For their distinguished conduct on the lbth

of June, 1815, authority was now granted to the Royal Regiinentof Dragoons to bear on their guidons and appointments the word “ Waterloo. " Every officer and soldier present in the battle received a silver medal, and to the su baltern office rs and soldiers Was allowed the privilege of reckoning two years”

service

The Royal Regiment, of Dragoons left for

in the spring of 1760 the Regiment under

The ﬂanking columns arrived opposite the French leftabout 11 A.M., their approach being concealed bya thick fog. . The main body was still some distance away: but the Heredi-

Lieut. Colonel James Johnston left England to

tai'y Prince wishing to take advantage of the

serve with the British Cavalry under Prince Ferdinand of Brunswick, who commanded also a. Geiman army with uhom we were ﬁghting against the French. The Marquis

of Gianhy commanded the British cavalry.

surprise caused by his arrival which the fog had covered, decided to attack at once. A stubborn ﬁght ensued for the possession of a hill in the French rear and the issue hung in the balance for four hours. At this time the

Emerging from winter quarters in June, de

cavalry of the main body made its appearance

consequence of my not having been fortunate

enough to procure the recommendation of his Grace the Dome of Wellington. "1 inctosu a Copy of my own

eye—Wiiicxsei.

sicn

Radclyffe.

it was not, however,

until the 2nd

May, 1838, that the regiment at length received permission to wear an “ Eagle,” in com. me moration of that taken at Waterloo twentythree years before by Captain Kennedy Clark, the particulars of which interesting episode require to be detailed at greater length ;and it will be seen that it was not delay only but difﬁculty, which that brave officer experienCed in establishing his claim. The following letter to General The Marquis

statement

made at fil'tlsSelS while confined by my wounds, top/ether With the evidence of two

for that day towards increase of pty and pen~ routed.

home the following year. 1680.

ensigncy, but has hitherto declined bestowing any lIl'rtl’li cf his approbation on me, in

taken by Lieutenant-Colonel

Their eVidence has not yet been

submitted io his Giace. and I feel hopes that, if sanctioned by your Lordships recommendation. he 11 ay be pleased to receive it favourably. “l have h.:d the honour of being twice under yourhii'dsnip's com mand, have served almost fifteen years in the British C ivalry, nearly tive_ of which I was engaged in active seL'Vice in the Peninsula. I had two horses killed under me, and received two Wounds at Waterloo, the.

lib

'l‘ H E

EAGLE

second of which obliged me to leave the lield about seven o‘clock in the evening. Your

to catch the standard so as to hold it. Corporal Stiles and some other men rushed up

Lordship's severe wound and return to Eng-

to my assistance, and the standard Was in all

and prevented me making any appiication to you at the time, nor should I nowtrouole your

lnstant in the corporal’s possession, it falling across him as he came upon my left, before it reached the ground. 1‘ (Sd ) A K. CLARK, CAPT . lt’oi/ul Dragoer ” Notwithstanding these representations, which, with the corroborative evidence, were submitted to [-1. R [-1, The CommanderinChief and to the Duke of Wellington, they were not favourably entertained, and it was not until the 30th of April, 1839, that, as a public and distinguished recognition of his condiiui at the battle of Waterloo, Captain, now Lieutenant—Colonel Clark Kennedy, C B, coin» manding the 7th or Princess Royal“ Regiment of Dragoon Guards, was authorised, in addition to the name and arms of Kennedy to bear the following honourable augmentation in remembrance of this remarkable action.

Lordship with the above details

(for

the

tediousness of which I beg to apologise) did 1 know any other modeof having the transac

T-ion cleared up, having been since informed that an officer (Lieutenant Bridges), who was absent during the action, placed the name of Corporal Stiles on the ‘Eagle,' at Brussels, making no mention of me. 1 have the honour to be, MY LORD, Your Lordship's most obedient humble servant,

g5d.)

A. K. CLARK, CAPT, Royal Dru )OOHN.

To The Most Honorable THE MARQUIS or ANGLESEY, G. C. B “Memorandum relaizng

10 (In: Cap/in“ of {he

‘ Eagle ’ ofihe 105m Regiment of French In.fmitryat the Bottled liVatei'lou, moi/day,

1.8M

Juiie,1815

“When my squadron (the centre one) of the Royal Dragoons had advanced 2H0 or 300 yards beyond the second ledge, and toe iirst line of French infantry had been broac, l perceived, a little to my left, an enemy's ‘Eagle‘ amongst the infantry, with which the

bearer was making every exertion to get towards the iear of the column. 1 im mediate ly rode to the place calling out to ‘Secure the Colour” and at the same time my horse reach-

L'z'z :--~

"Upon a chief ermine the representation of a French Eagle, and ﬂag, with the inscrip. tion ‘L’Empereur Napoleon au 105e Regiment" thereon, and a sword disposed salterwise, and over the same the word ‘Waterloo‘ being

commemorative oi" the capture of the ‘Eagle ‘ at Waterloo, and the sword used on that occa» sion by the petitioner ; and upon wreaths of his liveries are set crests, on the dextera soldier of the lit or Royal Dragoons, holding in his right hand a sword proper and in his

‘was appointed to an ensigncy in the 6th West India Regiment on the 23rd of April, 1816, was placed on half'pay on the 20th of December, 1817, and died on the 9th of January, 1828, The following were the oiiicers who re— ceived medals for Waterloo, in addition to which Co’onelArthur B. Clifton received the Companionship of the Order of the Bath, the Second Class of the Russian Order of St. Anne. and the Fourth Class of the Order of Major and Brevet-Lieu—

Wilhelm of Holland,

tenant-Colonel Philip Dorville, the Companionship of the Bath :— “ w MEDALS. ('apici‘z‘ns.——Brevet-Major Charles E. Radclyﬁie, Alexander Kennedy Clark, E’aulPhipps~ ”Lieutenanls.»—Henry Robert Garden, Sigis— mund Traflord, George Gunning, Townsend Richard Kelly, Samuel Wyndowe, CornthBlois, Stephen while Ommaney, Charles

Goodenough. "orimls —C. John

Massey.

Stephenson,

Having called in their detachments, the

Surgeon George Steed, Veterinary Surgeon W. Ryding Weleft the Royal Regiment of Dragoons on the 25th of January, 1816, in the barracks at 1pswich, whence, towards the end of August,1817, it marched for Scotland, to be there stationed at Glasgow, Hamilton, Ayr, Dumi’ries, and Stirling. In June, 1818, the regiment

embarked

Port

Patrick

for

left a French ‘Eagle ’ with a tricoloured ﬂag having thereon the number 105, and on the sinister a dolphin azure, and upon an escroll underneath this motto :— ‘A'vi'se la Fz'ii ' “ 80th April, 1839. " Lieutenant General Sir A. Kennedy Clark

tionof8 sergeants, 96 men, and 56 horses was made in the establishment. 111 June, :819, proceeding to Dublin, the regiment remained there until, in August;

‘Secure the Colour : it be-

died, in 1844, a K 0.13 and Colonel of the Royal

land, and - landing

,ongs to me E‘ This was addressed to some men who were behind meat the time the ofﬁcer As he fell with was in the act of falling, I was not able left, the ‘ Eagle,'a little to the

Scots Greys Francis Stiles, the Corporal of the Royal

Manchester, Oldham,

side, who carried the ‘Eagle,’ who staggered and fell

forwards, butl do not think he

reached the ground, on account of the pressure of his companions I immediately called out a second time,

Dragoons, who seems to have been brought forward very needlessly, and indeed unjustly,

suppression of the bayonet in the heavy cavalry, a question which had been raised in the yeai preceding, and in consequence it was discontinued. On the 19th of March, 182l, the Royals commenced their march to Radipole barracks near Weymouth, whence a number of parties were detached on revenue service and for the seizure of smuggled goods. While on this duty the regiment received upwards of £200. In September, the establishment was further reduced to 6 troops of 3 ofﬁcers, 3 sergeants, one trumpeter, one farrier, 50 rank and ﬁle, and «12 horses each. The regiment marched on the 13th of June, 1822, from the west and south-western districts to Richmond and other places near London: and on the 6th of July it was re viewed on Wormwood Scrubs by F‘ield‘Marshal His Royal Highness the Dune of York, KG, two days after which it moved to Canterbury, detaching troops and parties on revenue duty.

Honourable

Quartermaster W. Waddell,

Ireland, and landing at Donaghadee, proceed‘ ed to Long'ford, Ballinrobel, Sligo, Roscom_

ing it, I ran my sword into the oﬁicer‘s right

119

THE/EAGLE

In November a reduc.

mom, and Dunmore.

of the following year, it-embal‘ked for Eng-

at Liverpool, moved to Ashton,

and

Altrin-

cham. On the 20th of February this year, 1820, a submission to the King was drafted for the

Royal Dragoons left Canterbury 0n the 1st of July, 1828. for the cavalry barracks, Regent‘s Park, London, where, on arrival. they took the“l{ing’s "' duty, in the absence of the Household Cavalry, moved to quarters near Hounslow, preparatory to a review on

the 15th of the month, when the Royal Regi— mentof Dragoons furnished agu: rdvof-hon. our to Field-Marshal His Royal Highness the

Commanderain-Chief, as well as a squadron to keep the ground. On the following day, being relieved on the King’s duty, they marched for York,

arriving

there on the

29th of the month. (Tobe continued.)

The following remarks by the General Ofﬁcer Commanding, Northern Army, on his nspection of the Regiment, are published fol. nformation : —

“ 1 saw only the horses of this Regiment, in stables, which were of a good stamp, and in good condition. I can weli believe that. under Colonel de Lisle, the Regiment isin the highly efﬁcient state it is reported to be, A highly satisfactory report.”

THE

120

EAGLE

THE-

Next day, 9th instant, we sighted a party of SOUTH AFRICAN LETTERS. BETHULIE,

o. R. 0, 30m August, 1901. DEAR M.

My last letter left us bivouacked in the Hekpoort Valley, Western Transvaal. The first few days of the month were occupied in reconnaissance and we were subjected to a deal of sniping at long ranges ; fires were still visible on the berg on the 3rd instant, but the greater part of Kemp's Commando had moved to the west, from which direction we heard heavy firing on the 3rd and 4th, supposed to be the guns of Allenby’s Column. We marched to Slootkopjes on the 5th, my troop being advanced guard, passed through avery rough defile, a sort of miniature Khyber

Pass, found a few snipers as usual. about an hour afternoon

Camped

and went out at

3 P.M. to a small Boer laager, one troop seeing smoke amongst the rocks. Galloped for it, but the Boers saw or heard them just in time and bolted after a few wild shots, leaving

everything behind them. We burnt their baggage, which included three wagons. Two Boers were captured by the outposts

about fifty Boers at 8 A M,, and chased them to within five miles of Klerkskraal on the Mooi River where we lost touch, got back to camp at Vlakplaats about 9 P.M., having done fifty miles. Returned to Kalfontein on the lltb, whilst searching a cave en route found a sword, and some clothes and tobacco. Two days later

at point blank and had his helmet blown off,

six of us went down a kloof with steep wooded sides, ﬁfty feet high and two miles long, some more men were on the slopes and top. but we soon lost touch. After a. few hundred yards we came across fresh orange peel, evidently the orange-eater was in no violent hurry. Presently, however, the trail of orange peel gave place to oranges, our quarry had taken alarm. Searching every hole in the-

rocks we pushed on. Suddenly one of our men who had gone into a hole on his hands and knees found his face a few inches from a

end of his riﬂe persuaded the rock-dweller to come forth. That was but the beginning of

pounder and pom-pom); thirty Boers came along, but were warned by a shot and ﬂed;

the bag, by the time we reached the end of the kloof we had taken eight prisoners ;four— teen prisoners were taken all told. We marched into Krugersdorp on the 15th, bivouacked outside the station, entrained next day for

what ﬂowery language and with the business

Springfontein, O. R. 0.,

where we arrived

Boers and gave chase with a negative result. We went out from Kalfontein and escorted a convoy to Allenby's Column, occupied hill near Blaubank, covering deﬁle until convoy passed, saw Allen‘oy’s column on the move

early on the 18th and detrained at 4A.M.,

towards Hekpoort, six miles distant.

hundred Boers were reported, my troop being-

marched about fourteen miles to Jackalsfontein, accompanied by two guns of “ R ” Bate

tery, R H. A. To Boschman's Kop on the 19th,

where a

southhills, with a flat a mile wide extending wards to the Orange River. horses, Our Base Camp is here, where sick d. locate are etc, , stores men, dismounted rt in Our men at the base here gave a conce aply great was the town last night, which folk. town the preciated by Yours, etc,

are river, but we hear the commando we hoped was It east. northed trekk has after

OL-OL. ”——

make a stand here, but they

s the don’t seem very keen on ﬁghting, unles r. favou their in ly great are odds There are thousands of sheep and a great number of horses and cattle roaming about and we the hills and veldt practically Wild, drive in large numbers every day. There is no cultivated land in this district y except garden patches near farms, and hardl burnt or few a t excep seen, be to kraal a

Steenkopjes near Zeekenhoek, lay up in ambush( “ A "’ and “ B ” Squadrons with ﬁfteen»

killed, Commandant Delarey’s horse was shot,

Saw Boers on the 22nd near the Caledon

they would

“ Dopper's” whiskers who was lying “doggo ;” the trooper backed out with a yell and some-

and ﬁfty head of cattle captured. “ C ’v Squadron went out next morning, found some

blank.

duringthe pursuit one of our ofﬁcers was ﬁred

at Slootkopjes in the afternoon. Arrived at Krugersdorp on 6th instant and took in stores, leaving again the next day to

we pursued and “ pom-pomed. ” One Boer was

advanced guard, We found the kop clear, but saw eighteen Boers near another. We campv ed at Kinderfontein and moved next day to Pampasfontein, from the latter we made a night march to Mount Caramel, but drew

a party of twenty of the enemy were chased ;.

fortunately the bullet went high. Three prisoners were taken. On the 14th we rode to a. point overlooking the Hekpoort Valley, left our horses and searched kloofs, dismounted. Captain X. and

121

EAGLE

icts deserted. Thenatives now in various distr garri‘ have been removed to locations near ning obtai y enem the ent prev to s soned town supplies from them. The country is rough and broken, plenty such 3, of hills and kloofs, but they are not on large scale as those in the Western Transvaal or Northern Natal. The following will give you some idea of our work lately. On July 28th I had forty. three horses in my troop, to day there are twenty-six: poor brutes, they have a rough time struggling gamely along until they drop exhausted, their ﬁnal reward, a bullet !

My poor old charger whom I had ridden for over a year met with an accident on the train and had his shoulder broken, the last I saw of him, he was waiting to he shot, and hobbled up on three legs for a bit of biscuit; poor old chap ! We arrived here yesterday to get supplies, and leave again to-day at noon. Bethulie is a nice little town (it would, like many others, be called a village in England), built of red brick with a stone church in the centre. The town is situated right underneath a range of

OUR STANDING ARMY. The casual stroller down Pall Mall, shortly before noon on any day that a Court function is to be held, is likely to meet a picturesquely if not gorgeously arrayed body of men makIn ing their way to Buckingham Palace.

any garb, this ﬁne body of bemedalled old warriors—for they are all ex-soldiers— would attract attention, but in their quaint, blood-red Elizabethan costume, much ornamented with gold work, they not merely invite attention, they command it. And well

they might, for they are the Yeomen of the Guard, and represent the oldest military in» stitution in Britain and are the tiny seed from which has grown our present-day standing army. matThe “man in the street” being a ter—of—fact sort

of person, and not

inquiring turn of mind, is apt to imagine that

our tight little islands always had a permanent military organization for their defence, ng but such is not the case, as the Standi n moder y ativel compar a is Army of Britain institution, dating only from 1660, the year of the Restoration of Charles 1]., and having no parliamentary recognition till twentynine years later, when, as the result of a rebellious act on the part of a Scotch regiment in march-

ing to Edinburgh, instead of embarking for the low countries, to serve in the campaign

then being waged against Louis XlV. of France, Parliament passed the Mutiny Bill (now commonly called the Army Act) providing for the maintenance of a permanently

122

THE

EAGLE

THE

organized military force in the country for “the defence of the realm, and the preserva-

cumstance—their ability to wield a sword to-

tion of the balance of power in Europe.”

day with the same vigour and dexterity that

Even on the continent, the oldest standing army—that of France, instituted by King Charles VII. of that country—has been established hardly ﬁve hundred years, so that

they employed aﬂail yesterday ~coupled with

professional soldiering is not, therefore, as might be supposed, a legacy that has been bequeathed and passed down to us uninterruptedly through the centuries, by the

triumphant cohorts of Czesar.

This ready adaptability of her sons to cir-

the insular-ity of the country was doubtless a contributing factor to rendering the need of apermanent land force anfelt in England during the early and middle ages. But the main determining factor was supplied by the peculiar system of land-tenure then obtaining in the country, Landholders enjoyed their ﬁefs only so long as they were capable of

But though England, like allother countries

supplying a quota of ﬁghting men in propor-

in mediaeval times, had no organized military force during peace time, she nevertheless always had men in sufﬁcient numbers ready to respond to the call of duty when emeiw gency arose. and these sons of the soil. by their achievements at L‘recy and Agincourt, have left their children of the present day a heritage of glory and prestige in arms, the lustre of which is not outshone in splen" dour, by even the brilliancy of the professional soldiers‘ victories of Blenheim and Waterloo.

tion to the acreage of land they held, when

1485, and thus we ﬁnd that Henry Vll,, on

The stirringr eXhortaticn that Shakespeare

succeeding to the throne in the latter year

has put into the mouth of Henry V._.

“Once more unto the breach. dear friends once more. Or close up the wall with our English

was not inspired by contemplation past deeds of professional soldiers, those of men who were ploughmen of day, or perchance weavers of the day

dead.”

of the but by yesief. before

and the issues that were decided by this: triumph of unprofessional arms on that bloody day at Harﬂeur were not less moi mentous if they were less lasting than those determined by professional arms just four hundred years later. as the legendary “up Guards, and at ’em " echoed through tin; evening air of Waterloo when the crucia l

moment of victory had arrived, and the culminating blow was about 1.0 be struck that was to close the grave over an empire and over the greatest genius of war the moder n

world has known.

occasion

demanded.

Thus,

even in

peace

time, all the greater and lesser nobility were surrounded by retinues of men or feudal hands, and these, augmented when emer gency

arose,

formed

the

nucleus

the

the present day are all retired Army ofﬁcers possessingavery distinguished record, and only recently at Buckingham Palace have they celebrated the tercentenary of their institution in a manner beﬁtting their ancient lineage and their splendid traditions. No further development of military insti— tutions took place for aperiod of another forty years, and was then the outcome of a rising among the labouring classes of the eastern counties of England, led by Kat, a wealthy tanner. Asa precautionary measure againsta repetition of such disorders and outrages as marked this outbreak, Parliament in 1549

appointed Lieutenants of counties (no r called Lords Lieutenant of counties) and gave them authority to “levy men " within the bounds them of their/respective shires and “lend might It King." the of against the enemies much the

nation’s ﬁghting force during campaigns. But

be here interesting to note how

feudalism was practically swept

present—day path of progress takes the form of a circle, when we see outlined in this old

from

the

country as a result of the long civil war that was carried on between the years 1455 and

parliamentary enactment, the fundamental con— principle underlying the formation and Territorial newly-established stitution of the

and deriving inspiration doubtlessly from the;

Army in England.

system of feudal retinues that had been the bulwark of the country’s defence for four

When Charles 1. became king in 1625, another milestone on the road of military development,

centurieS, forming a body

was

archers

his

of ﬁfty picked

personal body-guard,

and

designating them The Yeomen of the Guard. This was a small beginning, but it was the foundation of our present- army. Twenty-four years later,

Henry Vlll., on

succeeding his father, created a fresh body of men to supplement that already established the new body being at ﬁrst Called “Spe1‘es”‘

or «- Men Of Arms,” but afterwards “ Gentle-

men Pensioners.”

They suffered severely

during the civil war of the reign of Charles 1,, and only consisted of twenty-ﬁve members When Charles II. was restored to the throne in 1660. This body is at present known as

the Honourable Company of Gentlemen-atArms— 3. title given it by James II. when he reorganized it. The Gentleme’n-atArms 0f

reached, by the formation then of a

of troop of horse composed of "gentlemen embodied were men quality " where serving

in a second troop.

1‘23

EAGLE

These two troops formed

was soon the king’s body-guard, and a third

afterwards raised for attendance on Queen Henrietta Marie. The three bodies were eventually amalgamated into a single regiment the and designated the Life Guards, and with Gentlemen the and Guard Yeomen of the the Pensioners they formed the nucleus of and long the of Royal army on the outbreak disastrous civil war.

Naturally under the new regime set upin England by the success of the parliamentary military arms in this campaign, these three what experienced days monarchial of relics anima. may be termed a period of suspended

tion.

For, all the surviving members—there

were not many as they had suffered severely in the war—betook themselves to the continent to share the exile of Prince Charles or to ﬁght in the ranks of different European armies in the various petty wars then being waged on the continent. On the Restoration, however, Charles II. in 1660 reestablished the Yeomen and the Pensioners and set about forming what was actually the ﬁrst standing army in England which, though it received no parliamentary recognition atthe time, was nevertheless paid out of the revenues of the country which then all

passed through the hands

of the

sovereign. From the relics of the forces that took the field in support of his ill-fated father, Charles selected a large number who had also gained ﬁghting experience in Europe, and of them formed the lst and 2nd Regiments of Life Monk‘s force he likewise incorpo— Guards rated asaregiment in the new military or. ganization that was now being developed. General

Monk, while

Commander of the

Republican forces in Scotland, deserted to the side of Charles and marching to London with the Regiment he had a short time previously raised at Coldstreain, was largely instrumenta‘: in bringing about the peaceful reestablish As a ment of monarchy in the country reward for their services and their commander's, this force was now permanently embodied and designated the Coldstream Guards. 1A nother force that Monk alsocarried with him——perhaps the ﬁnest mounted body of those that fought under the Parliamentary standard during the civil war— was that known as “Cromwell‘s Horse.” This splen. did body was re-organised and incorporated in the army, and a fresh designation given it, derived from their commander—the Earl of Oxforduand the colour of. their dress——blue. They were now styled the Oxford Blues. a title that is still perpetuated in their presentday designation—the Horse Guards (Blues).

THE 124

THE

Still another regiment was created at th time. Serving under James Duke of York was ahardy ﬁghting body of men who had seen

much ﬁghting and rendered great service in the Netherlands, and from these Charles 11. created the First Regiment of Foot Guards, who, since Waterloo, have become better

a constitutional safeguard against a. military autocracy—a contingency it deemed might otherwise arise at any time—the enactment was intended to have force for ayear only Hence, the measure which transferred the control of the Army from the Sovereign to

Parliament was originally, and has since

known as the Grenadier Guards. The army thus established by Charles II-

remained, an annual and not a permanent statute. Thus arises the need for the sol—

numbered 5,000, but on the succession of his brother, James II. to the throne, the strength

emn farce enacted year after year at West—

was raised to 30,000.

But so great was the

suspicion, however, with which this large force was regarded by the country, that on the deposition of James, Parliament inserted a

claim in the Bill of Rights declaring that “the keeping of a standing army in the country in peace time, without the consent of Parlia-

ment, is illegal” and the acquiescing in this

minster, when the empty formality is gone through, of extending the Army’s existence for another twelve months. From this point onwards, it is, perhaps, needless to trace in any detail the development of our land forces. It might, however, be interesting to note in conclusion, that while the strength of the Standing Army in the days of Charles 11, its actual founder, was

by William III. was made a necessary condition to his accession. And yet, despite this very explicit declara-

5,000 and that this number had become augmented to 30,000 when James II. was deposed

tion against the maintenance of a standing army during peace time, we ﬁnd Parliament, before the ink is dry on the enactment pre. scribing apermanent armed force in the coun~ try, sedulously framing a fresh measure— The Mutiny Bill now known as the Army Act —in the same ye 1.1‘ (1689), expressly legalising such an institution. The origin of this Parliamentary rolte face was curious. A Scotch Regiment, then quartered at Ipswich, was ordered to Holland for service against the French led by Louis XIV. But instead of proceeding to the seat of war it proceeded to Edinburgh, as much to show its dislike to William III. personally, as to exhibit its complete disapprobation of the war against France that it considered he had injudiciously plunged the country into,

of the American War of Independence, nearly

twenty‘eight years later, yet at the outbreak a century after the latter event, the total number of men in our land forces at that time was only 46,000 and this, despite the

fact that during the period which had intervened England had fought through, and triumphantly emerged from four of the most arduous and epoch-making campaigns in the the War records of European history, with France (1689—1697), the Spanish War of Succession (1702—13), the War of the Austrian Succession (Him-$8), and the Seven Years‘

War (1756—68).

“ HYDE PARK.”

SERGEANTS’ MESS NOTES.

for the maintenance of a standing army on the grounds that it was necessary “for the defence of the realm and for the preservation

The past month has been somewhat un. usually mild in the matter of weather and has let us down very lightly. Work has been slightly increased in consequence of prepara And at pres tions for our march to Muttra to the dig» as exercised mostly are we ent, posal of extraordinary quantities of hit, fur» niture, etc., which have accumulated during

But, as

the past ﬁve years and which somehow we

immediately upon his accession. By the Mutiny Bill, Parliament provided

of the balance of power in Europe.”

EAGrLE

125

EAGLE never appeared to be aware of possessingThis, however, is adiecovery popularly insepa. With regard to furni. rable from a move. ture, my advice to all married folks and senior non—commissioned officers is to take all they

possess with them to Muttra rather than the sell here and purchase other articles in and cheap, is freight new station. Railway payby two, three, or more joining forces and ing for a complete truck, a gr eat saving

would be effected.

Muttra is not a place full

of furniture shops, and the only furniture obtainable is mostly old stuﬁ' which has been bought up cheap at sales by native bunnias, Who have and will be offered to newcomers, rates. no option of selection, at exorbitant

I am told on good authority that the price

furniture fetches in Muttra is staggering Therefore keep what you have and when ﬁnally able leaving Muttra then sell : one should be

to buy houses with the proceeds ! Of things social I have to record a Snooker Tournament and a Whist Drive. The former ﬁnally aroused considerable interest and ended Serbeat who Sutch, Sergeant for win in a secured geant Edwards. The latter therefore

ard of the Bognor Club, and is doing well. Some of his remarks will be generally inter esting, so I reproduce them here :— “ I met the late Corporals Bound and Vigor the in Brighton, the formeris abutcher and igade. Fire-Br Police latter a member of the ‘Lampy ’ West is also 3. ‘Copper’ there. A member of this Club is brother to ‘Whimsr cal’ Hughes, the man who was Corporal in the Regiment a few years ago. ‘ Whimsie’ is re‘ ported to be well-to-do and much worried I should like you to about the Budget! ned that a per. concer all to known make it sonal character from one's Squadron officer is what employers ask for from men seeking employment. The formal military character rightly is a snare and a delusion, and civilians

For regard it as so much waste-paper. my of portion tive descrip the take e, instanc I go l4st_ 10 stone.’ ‘Weight own 2lbs'. and alas! my ombongpwong is inI shudder to think creasing still further. what Colonel dc Lisle would say if he saw

me now.

Long since, when I was compar.

atively slim and dainty, [have a recollection old of him referring to me as ‘that fat g cookin good and beef h Englis Sergeant”.

second place. of The Whist Drive, a now popular form

will work wonders. I have eschewed pota_ toes and White bread, but have not yet,

when amusement, was held on the 4th instant,

my summed up sufﬁcient courage to forego It won’t run to ‘Blue matutinal ‘pint,’ Give my love to all old Niles,‘of course! have a lot of new young you see I friends. Tell them from me to blood in the mess. drink plenty of water, keep single, and walk

the station the members of all the messes in

were invited.

Dancing took place during the

the card interval and at the conclusion of spent. was evening games, a most enjoyable :— follows as were The winners ilies ist Prize, .. 2nd ,, Gents ,, lst ,, 2nd ..

Frame, .. Mrs. Gould. R. A.. Silver Photo .. Mrs. Waddell, H.L. I .. Butter Dish, .. Scrgt.(}ould.R.A, Clock. Clapcott, R.D., Cigarette Box. ,, ..

to The last-named member lately returned of staff instructional the the Regiment from Clap‘ Mrs. with and volunteers, the mounted the coming cott and family leaves for home in trooping season. letter from Mr. I have received an amusing

(late Sergeant) “Wally” Weston, who left the Regiment last spring.

He is at present Stew~

slow.” Another Benedick is added to the mess in who the person of Sergeant George Bean, at the month last of 7th the on d marrie was ’ Scotch Church, Lucknow, to Queenie Marciel A. G. R. Dale, n Captai of eldest daughter The Pretoria News of June 19th publishes an of the account of the second Annual Dinner took which tion Associa y Transvaal Cavalr as a es describ it which and city, that in place of the successful function. Two trumpeters

126

THE

8rd Bussars sounded all the CLLVrLll‘y rearimental calls and eX-members of the various

corps answered to them.

Those responding

to our call were “ " a '\ :’ The ﬁrst is, of 00113311351‘9312111?{31“159‘11 , 0\ ostber— geant, and the second is the formerly well known “Frankie" Ellison, some time Saddler There must be many more ex-Royals in South Africa It is with the deepest regret that I have to record the death of Sergeant Fred Alleliin.

EAGLE

A MONTHLY CHRONICLE OF THE ROYAL DRAGOONS. “ SPECTEMUR AGENDO.”

1)’r\ .

l“il\V‘l['d1s l 1 1. 1 us.‘ 1d i' g ' in: ‘ 101; promotion. 1 V n \ubyd‘ A Md H 1: A H. Rule 11. \V. W. Fitzﬁerald n 1, living/111111“.

gins.

Leon‘Corpl, Richardson passed in Hindusiuni, Lower Mundard, l’zll't1[uald iii lilleiiiontury Puslitu.

Allcliin

Slu‘I’Tl‘IMBl‘lR,

He was amemberof the mess for

time, but reverted to

request.

4631‘, Pie. (\llroiun, 1st (lood-(‘oiiiliict Hildiyp ' ., 43”” L c )ougzii 2nd is: (loot l » tondurt 7 7‘1 Driver, Midge.

Bowman, 1st

Murcliunt, lst Freestone. lst Whiteﬁeld. lst Carver, 2nd Soiitlm'ood, ist . Frest. lst \Vulden. lst Surrett, lst Braysher, 1st

some

All old Royals of the last ﬁfteen

years or so will remember Winter as a fine exponent of the ﬁstic art. He won the Re0i< menial Heavy weights on several occasiorfs and was‘also successful in many outside competitions and contests in Ireland and England. May they rest in peace! “ SERGEANT."

2nd-Lieut. W. W. li‘itzGe'i " ' " 101 ' ' detach» ' ment 11‘. duty. 11111 to N8.llll'1dl 9 He. Lilly from Julapnlizir. \Vooliord ., ‘ Thompson ,, 361:1, corp]. Jones ,, 0‘s“ ., ThownSv nd ,. Mnith i'rom Manorzi Cainn.

dal;‘301‘iifljlalllatl?j\- C

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(Ilierrington, 2nd August, 111011. for 1511

;, iﬁiiidsrijialdtniliig) pmg'Edw: rdes,

from (3th Jilly, 1901), to

I11

Wt: he: to zicknoivlerlue with thanks the receipt of Llic followinnr conteniiniruriv. 7 " St George's Gazette." ” The \Vliiic Lancer." “ The X. R.H to.” " H. L. 1. Chronicle." "The )liissnorie Times.“ " Army (1: ' Service Corps Journul."

Married EstabLishmeut.

SEl'gt. Bean is bought on strer th ' Establishment. 7 1g ol Ma ”(1d 1111131131011. of Service.

:7 'l‘he followingr subscriptions to T1111 Eur/Z1. have been received General Uruliuni

Discharges. 4741

McLellan to Colours . Dorling Leenljorpl. Marlow ,, Alllott ,, Buckley Buck 1. I’Le. Torrie

complete

CoiTce S1101», July Sulcs

twelve years ~

Wife of 41310,Cor11l. Todd, of a. son at Roorkeo College. :3

,, ,, y.

-1

3372.

PRINTED FOR THE EDITOR BY W. S

R. A. '1‘. A. .. .. Sergeant H. Plumb Munorai Detachment Stril’i' s rueunt Cone

Deaths. 4:70,

Sergt.

Allchin

11‘

2zdn July. 1900.

Station

is it true we have to conGood

M. s. S.——.\‘lany thanks for photo and letter. wishes.

" HYDE P.\RK.”—We shall be pleased further interesting articles.

receive

hay "GIRLIE ”701m best advice to you is to “' make

while the sun shines.” ‘- Coin;i51."—Thanks for card and cake.

Our con-

gratulations and best Wishes.

H. 1’. ~Write to your late Squadron leader. be " AGGRIEYEU ”#Think of your 1111111111, and don’t childish.

L. U.»— While there’s 11‘. C.——Slll’)SUl‘llel‘vifi

life, there’s hope:

and who

'3 received.

Amused

your

description of your Punjabi friends. OLD ROYAL; Mr. Finn will give you all information about the Old Comrades' Dinner. .1, B.—Cu.nlain Flori. 1:1 0. Guest is a. student at Camberley Staff College. , Oi.i.ii5.—The new honours will be introduced beingr well, into the front cover design of lirst number in 1910.

an the

MONTHLY NOTES. Since the issue of our previous number, we have been treated to what is known as “ a break in the ruins," that is to say, the

monsoon became tired and paused for breath,

Scrut, Buckley by purchase. Births

Cri‘nl.

0. M. C. VP 0 received. g: atiilat-e you I”

kiiows but»

11‘111'111111/11 and Laws.

Plumb to he hergeant on the Unattached List.

news.

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(133371335; 1:1} niziliihifitzu. 1\[. Wood, 24th August. 1909, {or 1511

Pte. Bray to be Unpaid Lance-Corporal. ., Fuller ,, ..

1111. 1111p11c111i011. 11) 1111 lu'1111111'.

Black to Promotions and Appointments.

M arcs.

REGIMENTAL GAZETTE.

ljnwman

‘9

White, lst Evans, 1st

Corporal at his own

1905).

Subscriptions 111 " 7711 142111111" 1111 1111,1111101111' :— ' 1111's 11! 111111111. 111,1'11111111111 .. ‘ 111151111171111'11 " " .. A0114 . 111111351011611 mire/us: 111111112111, AM [101111 (1717311111. 1111111111111. 01 1.1-]. 111/111»). 111 11111111 .. . .. 1’1‘171'5 1111' 110/111 1‘11 1111111112: .. 114-11 1’1'11'1» 1111' 1mm 111 111111‘1'111111111'.<.<1.11l11 r1 111111‘11's 1111 Li 111111. .. 111 111: 11111111 11111 Edi/1111‘. 19111151711111.0111 111'? 111111 [11. 11111111111111111‘111 s 211. acknowledged 11? 1 ‘ .vlllz'fmiita 11111111111113. (2/11 The 111111111 - 1,11, 1111 new! 111111111111‘ 111 1111 11111111- 11111111111111 111 1191111111 1111 11/111? 111‘ Nubscribprs 01111111111111 111111' (111 151111.111'01' 1111' _/‘111-10111/1i.111' 111(11‘1111/ 1/11 [.‘111111111-111. #1011111 111111111 1111 11.6111 1111111" ‘ . ’11 /1(111 .11 [ll/1111715 111111111111 111‘ 11111111' ropzvs 111% K'épl 112. stock 111111 c1111.

(.‘1’11111-(‘1111111101 Badges.

S A. S.—You would probably know very few of the present members of the Sergeants’ Mess. The number of changes in the past four years have been extraordinary. . W. W. Thanks for paper. We note interesting

LUUKNUW. INDIA,

11rr1111111111i

al.

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS.

EDITORIAL NOTICES.

his serious illness at Naini ’l‘al, and subse. quently the sad news reached us that he had succumbed to abscess on the liver in the joined the Regiment in June, 159:, and served in South Africa. He was a smartnoncoinniiSsioned oﬂicer and was greatly esteemed by his comrades. 1 The death is also reported of Corporal “Johnnie" Winter who was lnvalided home a. few months ago, and died in Netley HOspit-

\VEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 15TH, 190%).

VOL. 111.

l?.1'11111i11111i1iiis.

Limit . G.'

in these Columns, in July, I drew attention to

Hospital there on the 22nd ultimo.

Elie ~agle.

(71'1‘1111‘ cutcs. N. Limit. '1‘. S. li'win ‘ ‘'lW'll‘dCd l _ us' cci 1 il _si n 7 ‘ ' Pr ‘ I ' 1i 120, Lee -Oo_rnl. Driver. uwuriicd it ﬂdddllllzilbs can; tilliuu ol Ediicntion. L I I I} 1111,10 in? . Pto. (ll‘r‘ﬂtiry -\ n Cairns ., ‘ n ,, Titulicrul‘ J. n u . Kelland . h w n . S. . Sutton u ,. Pt . Browning ii :1 Burt ,, .1 ,, Williams ., .1 q MUArtliur .. ,1 u

Hos itul,

‘

' ’ -

Nam] “I'

Uorpl. Winter,at Netley Hospital, England.

Mimi; AT THE METHODIST PUBLISHING House, LUCKNOW.

Bound copies of Volume II, 1903, can be had on application Price, Rs. 5 (350-515-511) 1101' com:

and allowed us to dry our rooms and clothing. and recover from our colds. From the middle until nearly the end of August the rain kept oif, only, however, to return with renewed vigour and last well into the present month

128

T H E

THE

EAGLE

The second nhukker

As we write, it is several days since the rain

satisﬁed, and that now time-worn expression

scored the ﬁrst goal.

again ceased and we have had a spell of Junelike weather. This most probably is the beginning of the end of the monsoon. The excessive heat is no doubt the precursor of

“roll on ” is ever on our lips.

was a hard—fought bout, the ball travelling all over the ground, but there was no addition

a ﬁnal week or so‘s downpour, and then will come the commencement of the glorious cold

weather period. It so happens that the crops were beginning

And it is this eternal “ roll on " that robs us of the full enjoyment of life, for in the senseless craving for change, and anticipa. tions of a future which we vaguely imagine will be better, we fail to appreciate the happiness of the present, and it is only in retro-

spection that realisation comes.

How often,

to suffer from the protracted break, and the

in talking over old times, one hears the re-

return of the monsoon came in the nick of

mark, “ Ah, those were the happy days; so diﬁerent to now,” and yet it is only now that

to the score. In the third chukker, Tomkinson ran the ball to the Gymkhana end,

Where Rube putit through. Score—two goals In the to love in favour of the Pinchers and early, scored n Tomkinso chukker, fourth in the ﬁfth was instrumental in preventing three penalty shots by the Gymkhana from taking elfect. Final scorez—Pinchers. 3 goals; Gymkhana, O

time.

There is now every promise of a bump-

er harvest, and beside the importance of this prospect, which means so much to the peasant, the mere matter of our minor physical

SECOND ROUND.

the “old times” are realised to have been happy, while a year or so hence the very

The Finishers v. Poona. Gymkhana “13” Team.

if we be quite honest about it, it really matters very little to us whether we get fair

peculiar phase of our character should help One is much tempted to quote afew of

1. Mr. Montgomery,R.l“.A, 2. CaptainGrelg. 3 Capt. Sproule. 4th Cavy< back Mr. Dickson. Northamptons.

weather or foul, inasmuch as we would complain in either case, for grumbling is our chief pleasure, and strange as it may seem, we insist upon grumbling at any and everything!

the innumerable proverbs and tit-bits of philosophy applicable hereto, but there is the:risk

The Pinchers had much the best of this game throughout, and in the ﬁrst chukker

of being accused of sermonising We leave it at that, therefore, and pass on to other things.

Tomkinson scored two goals and Hodgson

In the Junior Polo Tournament at Poona the Regiment were represented by Captain Tomkinson and Mr. Rube, who, together with Mr. Scott and Captain Hodgson of the Royal Fusiliers, formed a powerful combination known as the “Pinchers ” There were fifteen entries for the tournament, and the “Pinchers,” after getting through the first and second rounds by beating the Poona Gymkhana “A” team, and in the second round their “B” team, succumbed in the semi-final to the Royal Engineers. The following accounts of their matches are taken from the Asian :—

ing the Pinchers’ score to 7—0. In the fourth

discomforts fades into insigniﬁcance. Indeed,

same remark will be applied to the present times! A moments reﬂection upon this us.

To hear our captions, fault-ﬁnding conversa-

tions with the native servants, who grove] before us, “salaam " us, and address us as

“your Excellency and “your Honour ;” to witness our haughty manner as the syce holds

our stirrup while we throw a languid leg over the saddle for our morning ride; to note the

air of condescension with which we accept an invitation to play cricket, or football, or hockey, and the casual way in which we stroll up ten

minutes after the advertised time of starting; to observe the critical glances we direct at the really excellent food that is put before us,

and the look of scorn with which we reject a dish (because we aren’t hungry l); all these

FIRST ROUND.

things would cause a stranger to conclude we were born and bred in the lap of luxury, and that prior to the fatal mistake of our en< listment, we had been accustomed to a mode

of lifelittle removed from that of the patricians of old Rome. No matter in what pleasant lines our lives run, we are apparently never

The Pinchers v. Poona Gymkhana “A” Team. Mr. Rube, RD. 1 2. Mr. Scott 3 Capt. Tomkinson, RD. back. Capt. Hodgson. R. F.

1. Mr. Graham. 2. AgaCassim Shah, A.-D -(.‘. 3. Capt. Houston, A. V. 0. back. Major Martin,A V.'C.

In the ﬁrst chuklcer the Pinchers had the best of matters, and against strong opposition

Mr. Rube, R. D. 1 Mr. Scott. 2 3. Capt.’I‘omkinson. RD. back. Capt. Hodgsonﬂtl".

one. In the second chukker they each added afurther goal, and in the third, Tomkinson scored yet another,and Rube one, thus bring» period nothing was scored, though the Pinchers had three penalty shots; but in

the

ﬁfth two more goals, one by Rube and another by Hodgson, brought the Pinchers’ .ﬁnal score to 9-——0. SEMI-FINAL ROUNDThe Pinclwrs v Royal Engineers. 1.

Mr. Rube, R. D. 1. Mr. Richardson. 2. Major liremncr. Mr. Scott. 2 3. Capt. Tomkinson, R. I). 3. Mr. Binney. back. Capt. tlodgson, R. F. back. Mr. Boyd.

in the ﬁrst three chukkers the Sappers put up four goals (Binney, two ; Boyd, one ; Bremuer, one), but towards the end of the ..third period, the Pinchers forced the ball into

129

EAGLE

Bremner. and at the call of time they had won by six goals to one.

Since our last issue the following perform-

ances on the turf during the Poona extra meetings have gone to the credit of the Regiment. It will be seen that, as usual, Captain Tomkinson's name ﬁgures very prominently, and indeed he has never been in better form than at present. The Subalterns’ Plate—Half mile. Arabs, 14-1 and under. Mr. Rube’s b. a. h. Nettle, 10-6. (Capt. Tomkinson) . . .. .. ..2. .,won by 1} lengths, 1%; lengths between 2nd and 3rd.” The Sangam Plate—For horses, 1} miles over 6 ﬂights of hurdles Mr. Cosens’ br. ans. g. Umutbee, 10st ......2 (Randall). cnIdle, lOSt. Mr, Miles’ ch. ausg

(Capt. Tomkinson) . .. .. . .3. “ The winner, hotly challenged by Idle and Umutbee, won by 1:}; lengths : % length between 2nd and 3rd.” The Club Plate—6 furlongs for horses, Mr. Rube’ s b aus. g. Chassepot, 10-4. (Capt. Tomkinson) . ...... 1. Mr. Miles’ ch. e g White Heather, 11- 4 .‘2. (Mr. Kearsey) ......... “ At the turn Chassepot overhauled White Heather and very nicely ridden, won by White Heather beat Yuba ‘2‘ lengths for second place by a. length." The Tally-ho Plate—Handicap Hurdle Race, 143 miles over 7 ﬂights. Mr. Cosens‘ br. aus. g. Umutbee, lO-S, Randall, Deadheat, 3rd. Major Moore’s oh. aus. g. Daroji, lO-O, Northmore, Deadheat, 3rd.

“ . . . .. ..a length between 2nd and 3rd T’Le Beginners’ Chase—2 miles 1 furlong.

their opponents’ half, and Tomkinson serving .Hodgson, the latter scored. In the fourth and

Mr. Nicholson’s Ugly, 10-11.

ﬁfth chukkers the Sappers added two more goals through the efforts of Richardson and

“ .. . . ..winner came away and won by 12 lengths. ”

(Capt. Tomkinson) .. ... . .. ..2.

150'

T HE

The Service Plate—7 furlongs. For Arabs. Mr. Rube’s The Munshi, 10-5 (car. 10-11). (Capt. Tomkinson) . . .. .. .. . .1. “ The Munshi and Arabistan made a great race home, the former winning with

a splendid effort on the post by a head. " The Welter Plate~—7 furlongs. G. R‘s.

Capt. Badger’s Squire Alfred, 10-12.

E A (a‘r L E the Royals immediately marched to the vicinity of Tournay. Here, on the 10th May, they were again in action, though only losing two horseskilled and a man and three horses wounded. This affair occurred at Willems, and H. R. H. reported that the troops “had well support-

ed the reputation acquired on the 26th of last month," i e, at Beaumont

senior fixtures in Indian football, and both

attract a large number of entrants. We wish our team the best of luck :— Bandmaster Holt, S.S.M. R. R. Jeffrey, ORB. Fisher; Corporals McDonall, Seaton and Jarrett ; Privates Moore, Helliwell, Ashworth, Boyle, Hart, Whyte and Reeves, and Trumpeter Waters.

(Capt. Tomkinson) .......... 1.

Mr. Rube’s Chassepot, 10~7. (Mr. Kearsey) .............. 3_ “ In a good race home Squire Alfred won by three—quarters of a length ; Chassepot

securing third place a length behind the second,” In recognition of services rendered at the Battle of Beaumont on April 26th, 1794, and at the Battle of Willems on May 10th, 1794, the

Regiment have been granted the privilege of bearing upon their standard and appointments the following honours :—— “Beaumont,” “ Willems"

These two battles took place during the war of coalition against the French, which was declared in 1791. A British force was sent

to assist the Dutch against the French, and the Royal Dragoons, landing at Ostend.

formed part of this force under H. R. H The Duke of York, KG.

Although these

two places are not mentioned by name in

the Regimental History, the operations dur

ing which these ﬁghts took place are there described. The Battle of Beaumont or Cateau occurred during the siege operations against Landrécies. The Royals were detach. ed

with

seven other cavalry regiments to

turn the French left, a movement which was attended with the most brilliant results. The enemy were completely routed and the French Lieutenant-General Chapuy, captured to« gether with 35 pieces of cannon. The Duke of York in his account of the action observes “ the behaviour of the British Cavalry has been beyond all praise.” On the same day as

this ﬁght, the fall of Landriicies teek place, and

Our worthy M. F. H, Captain Sandbach, has been asked to take over the Ootacamund Hounds in the south of [ndia in place of Cap‘ tain Godfrey Heseltine, who retires at the end of the present season. Captain Sandbach pro. ceeds on two months' leave till the end of Cote. her, for the purpose of going over the country round Ootacamund and becoming acqainted with all the details necessary to the manage ment of his new charge. According to present; arrangements he will return to Ootacamund at the

commencement

next season,

about

April, and hunt the hounds during the summer. We extend our congratulations to him: and wish him the best of luck and sport.

“SHIKAREE " writes as follows 2—“ On the 1st of next month the shooting season begins again, although, with the exception of black buck, chinkara, and the other deer, there will belittle to shoot at until November. Duck and wild fowl will not be got until the weather gets cold, but our march to Muttra should provide us with opportunities for supple; menting our ‘cutlets’ and ‘khaki steaks with something choice ;as, for example, pigeon, or a brace of partridge, or even, if we are very fortunate, teal or duck. The road to Muttra winds through ideal slz/kar country; and with time, permission, and sufficient cartridges we ought to enjoy ourselves. We dream of perfect weather, short ‘ exerv

Mr. Miles arrived in Bombay from home on August 27th and proceeded to Poona, where he will spend the remainder of his leave, racing and playing polo. We understand that he and Captain Tomkinson are members of a polo team to be called the “Penguins,” which iS entered in the next polo tournament during the big race meeting Mr. Irwin proceeds to Kashmir for six weeks to shoot, on the return of Mr. Edwardes whoisdue here on September 15th, Mr Jump arrived from Naini Tal on August Blst after a somewhat uneventful

shooting trip in the Kumaon Hills.

Major Wood

left for home on sixty days" leave last month. The following team representing the Regi. ment has proceeded to Bombay to take part

in the

Rovers

Football

Cup Tournament-

This and the Durand Tournament, which latter, it will be remembered, was won by the Regiment in 1905, are considered the two

cise‘ marches, shady camping grounds close to large shallow lakes, an hour or two‘s pot— ting at innumerable water—fowl, the heavilyiaden

return to camp, the

131

THE EAGLE

veritable bait-thieves, and the most delicate angling is necessary to land them. The skill required for large roach and (lace ﬁshing in England is child’s play in comparison, but the dash and gameness of the 707m, when it is hooked, is something to live for, as they run to 401115 and more. Several nice fish have been caught, how— ever, notably seetal, 14711ll)S. and Hilts ; and a few ion/Iago atu from 4 to Gle. But these are minor triumphs compared with what we shall do in ‘the promised land ’—Muttra !” The following extract dealing with the doings of the Surrey Yeomanry at the Arundel manoeuvres tells us that our old friend “ Ally" Swan is as busy as ever :— “On Monday an inspection of troops was held, and on Tuesday an inspection by the General Officer Commanding the Eastern Counties. It is interesting to note that Regimenta lSergeant-Major Swan is an old Arun(19‘ man. He joined the Royal Dragoons in 1687, served in South Africa during the war, proceeded to India in January, 1904, and was posted to the permanent staff of the Surrey Princess of Wales’ Yeomanry in November,

1.004.

He was apprenticed to the late Mr. H,

Warden, of Littlehampton, in 1884 to 1886.

‘duck eshtew=

supper, the ‘fags‘ and pipes round the dying embers 0f the ﬁre, the yarns, ‘tall‘

In the United Provinces Secretariat Footbuli

Cup Tournament, open

squadronS,

cool

batteries and companies, our "’ D" Squadron

nights, and the long refreshing sleeps; and

met “ S” Battery, Royal Horse Artillery, sta-

it recalls memories of South Africa, for even

tioned at Lucknow, and after two replays had to acknowledge defeat. "S” Battery are an unusually tine battery team, and are the holders of the ii. A. Cup which they have twice won outright. The ﬁrst game took place on 24th ultimo and “ D” put on a. point early in the ﬁrst half, but the Gunners equalised and the game

and improbable,

but

interesting,

the

if we roughed it in that campaign, we were really very happy most of the time. ,Our ‘old Izaak' has much to say of )‘o/uz fishing, which sport he has lately been in. dulgingin, with little result, except the strain» ing to its limit of his great patience, and the involuntary expression of a further

variety of expletives. the display

of cunning

He has experienced (of wvhich Thomas

treats, in his book "l‘he Rod in India " ). of this ﬁsh, and the ease with which they steal abait without moving the ﬂoat. They are

was-drawn. Two days later the teams met again, when the game was almost a replica of the ﬁrst, our men gaining an early lead and allowing their opponents to get level. ‘

132

'1‘ H E

EAGLE '1‘ H E

At the third meeting which, naturally, attracted a large number of spectators, the Gunners were the better team and came out winners by 2 goals to nil. Eventually, the Gunners won the tournament, beating the Band of the Highland Light Infantry by 2 to 1. Our Manora correspondent writes as follows :—~ “The detachment team in the Secretariat

Cup comprised Corporals Rising, Meteer and Gellatly, and Privates Moore, Whyte, Duckworth, Adams, Cole, Watson, Ashford and

Stribling.

They met the Band, B. L 1.. on

the 24th ultimo. and after playing an extra ten minutes each way were beaten by 2 goals to 1. It was a really good game, but our men fell off in combination towards the end. At a Gymkhana Private Duckworth won the Football kicking contest.

The weather here has improved somewhat of late. and cricket has been played on the

Flats, but so far our men have taken no part, A Polo tournament is to be held up here during the Civil Service Week beginning on September 20th. Up to date there are nine teams entered, including one from the Regiment consisting of Major Makins and Messrs. Turner and FitzGerald. The tournament is open to any three players in India, and should provide some good games, though the best two teams appear to be the 15th Hussars, and a scratch team collected by Captain Pollok. There has been no shz‘kar up to date except for ﬁshermen. Mr. Jump towards the end of August went out with a party of four rods

to Naukatcha, and in ten days eighty ﬁSh averaging 2%1bs. were taken. ”

men who had known him in the Regiment :—

The following cutting was taken from an

Perhaps some of our readers

Will tell us something about the late Mr. Minus. When the Regiment billeted in Read-

ing on the march to Salisbury plain in 1898, we remember to have seen a policeman who

HISTORICAL RECORD

-‘ After ‘22 years’ service in the local police force, and for 12 years prior to that with the

Of the First or the Royal Regiment of Dragoons, containing an account of its formation in the reign of

lst Royal Dragoons, P. C. Jas. E. Miuns has

King Charles the Second, and of its subsequent services to the present time.

died at Reading ” By General C. P. de Ainslie.

We would again draw the attention of Royals in England to the fact that the third

annual Old Comrades’ Dinner will take place in November. So far we have not heard the exact date, or other particulars, but doubtless the energetic Secretary, “ Billy” Finn, is now busy communicating this information, and in case the address of any one anxious‘lto attend is not known to him or the committee,

a letter to the former at Head Porters’ Lodge Gray‘s Inn, London, W. C., will elicit full particulars. No old Royal who can possibly

get to the Holborn Restaurant on that night should miss this reunion. The subscription is very moderate, and the dinner an excellent one, quite apart from the enjoyment of seeing

again old faces, and recalling the dear days spent in the regiment. At the last dinner twenty-two officers and over two hundred non—com missioned ofﬁcers and men were present, while many more took tickets and were prevented from coming by reason of business. It is hoped to see even

this large number increased at the forthcoming dinner, and weask all who can to give this most excellent gathering their utmost support».

For the convenience of English readers we have decided to issue in future with each copy of The Eagle a banker's slip. By ﬁlling this slip in and forwarding it to one’s bankv

er, the subscriptions will be remitted at the English paper.

E A G L E

came and chatted with several oﬂicers and

proper intervals, thus relieving readers who wish to subscribe in this manner from the bother of trying to remember when their

subscriptions are due, and helping us by reducing the number of reminder slips which we have to despatch at intervals.

(Continued) From York the Royals marched on the 24th of May, 1824, for Scotland, and there occupied Piershill Barracks. Edinburgh, with detach. ments to Perth, Cupar Angus, and Forfar. At the calamitous ﬁre which broke out in the Parliament Square in Edinburgh, in the month of November, the regiment was employed for three successive nights preserving order, protecting property, and render-

ing assistance to the unfortunate sufferers; and the dismounted men, with the barrack ﬁre-engine, aided materially in extinguishing the ﬂames in the Tron Church. Their services on this occasion were commended in a general order by Major-General Sir Thomas Bradford, commanding the forces in North Britain, and in a vote of thanks from the lord-provost, the magistrates, and the town council of Edinburgh. In the early part of March, 1825, the

regiment moved to Glasgow and Hamilton, whence, in the following month, it embarked for Ireland, where again landing at Donaghadee, it marched to Dundalk and Belturbet, whence several strong parties were required for the conduct of specie, the coinage of the two Kingdoms having been at this time assimi~ lated. On th‘ 80th of March, 1826, the Royals moved to Dublin. On the 24th of February, 1827, died in Connaught Square, London, an oiﬁcer whose services in the Royal Dragoons had established for him a well~deserved reputation—Lieu.

tenant-ColonelRadclyﬁe, BrigadeMajor to the Cavalry in Great Britain, at the age of 53. This remarkable oﬁicer had served in most of the campaigns of the late revolution-

133

ary war, commencing under H. R. H. the Duke of York, in Flanders, in 1793, and ending with the great victory of Waterloo in 1815, where he received a severe wound from a musket ball lodging in the knee, and which, from great impossibility of extraction, continued t) be a great cause of suffering to the end of his life. His lieutenant-colonelcy dates from that glorious day, previous to which he had been present in the peninsula and south of France, as Brigade‘Major of Cavalry, at the battles of Busaco, Fuentes. d’Onor, Salamanca, Vittoria, the blockade of Pampeluna, investment of

Bayonne, besides.

various engagements of less note. Up to the battle of Toulouse, on the 10th of April, 1814, Lieutenant-Colonel Radclyife had held the appointment of Brigade-Major, but from that date he was promoted to the higher one of Assistant Adjutant-General to the Cavalry, in which capacity he accompanied its march through France to England. So entirely was his mind engrossed by his profession, that almosthis last words, but two hours before his death, to the inquiries of his physician werew“ Iam retreating, retreating, retreating : I cannot advance.” He was a dexterous swordsman, an accomplished ofﬁcer, an able tactician, on which subjects he had published a small work. A warm and sincere friend, a conscientious Christian, and brave man, Lieutenant-Colonel Radclyt‘fe lived universally and highly respected, as he died sincerely lamented. In April, 1827, the Royals moved to Newbridge, and thence in October following to Cork, Fermoy, and Bandon. In March, 1828, the whole assembling at Cork, marched into

barracks at Ballincollig. On the 26th of April, 1829, the regiment commenced its march to Dublin, where, early in May, it embarked for England, and landing at Liverpool went into billets in the town of Manchester, the barracks there having been pulled down for the purpose of re-construction.

134

THE‘EAGLE

On the 10th of June, Colonel Clifton, whose services in command of the regiment had been so long and so conspicuous, exchanged

to half-pay with Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Somerset unattached. During their stay

Manchester,

the

Royals were frequently called upon for pickets and parties for the prevention of riots

and

violation of the law by the operatives, who were generally in a state of serious disaffection. Detachments were also sent to Black» burn and Bolton with the same object. The death of General Garth, on the 16th of November this year, placed the colonelcy of the Royal Regiment of Dragoons at the disposal of His Majesty King George IV., who was pleased to confer it upon LieutenantGeneral Lord R. Edward Somerset, G.C.B., from the 17th Lancers, upon which occasion, ina letter, dated “Royal Lodge, November 22nd, 1829, ” and addressed to the Viscount Hill, commanding the Army~in-Chief, referring to certain arrangements submit-ted by his lordship. His Majesty observes :— “ My dear Lord, “ Subsequent to the receipt- of your letter of this day, your letter of the 19th reached my hand, and with reference to the recommend-

ation therein preferred, I have to observe to you that I consider it essential for the service that the Royal Dragoons should ever be held by an oﬁicer of rank, notwithstanding

the two successive precedents to the contra. ry : and as Lieutenan t-General Vandeleur has already a regiment of equal emolument, I

prefer that Lieutenant-General Lord Edward . Somerset should be removed from the 17th Lancers to the Royals.

Early in June, 1830, the regiment moved to Norwich and Ipswich, the establishment at the same time being reduced to 270 rank and ﬁle.

On the 26th of June died King George 1V., and one of the ﬁrst acts of his successor, William IV., was to order the abolition of the moustaches in the Royal Horse Artillery, and

(1‘

throughout the cavalry, with the exception ol‘

the Household and the Hussars.

During

this autumn the agricultural labourers excited by mischievous and designing individuals, and also, as was supposed, irritated by the increased introduction of steam machine cry in several counties, committed numerous acts of incendiarism and destruction of. pro— perty ; and in consequence the regiment was called upon for a number of detachments, to

assist the civil power in suppressing these outrages, and a resolution of thanks from the magistrates of Norfolk, acknowledging the very effective service rendered by the oﬂicers, non-commissioned oﬂicers, and privates of the regiment, was forwarded by the

Lord-Lieutenant of the County to General Viscount Hill who was pleased to express his satisfaction on being presented with so hon~ ourable a testimonial of their conduct. The regiment continued in these quarters the whole of the year 1831, and on the 20th of March, 1832, the head-quarters left Norwich for Canterbury, arriving there on the 24th of the month. On the 18th of May a route was received for the immediate march of four troops to Dartford, where, on arrival, orders were received to proceed to Woolwich, there to remain in case of their services being required in London. On the 25th of the month they returned to Canterbury.

On the 27th of July, the regiment was reviewed by the Right Honourable the General CommandinginChief, who expressed hint self well pleased with their appearance. On the 6th of August, a squadron. consist? ing of :2 captains, 2 subalterns, 4 sergeants and 100 rank and tile, with the Royal Stand. ard, under the command of Major Martin, marched to Colnbrook in the neighbourhood of Windsor, in Order to furnish, by express command of his Majesty, the guard-of-honour upon the occasion ofa review, to be held at Windsor on the 18th instant, at which it waS

the King‘s intention to present [an additiona] standard

to the Royal Regiment of Horse

Guards. On the following day, four troops under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Somersetleft Canterbury l'or Hyde Park Barracks, London. for the purpose of doing duty at the Horse Guards during the absence of the Life Guards, moved to Windsor, and while in London, the oiiicerol Silver Stick was held

by LieutenantColonel Somerset. At the review: on the l8th instant, Major Martin, commanding the guai‘d-of-lionour, received from his Majesty the decoration of the Royal Hanoverian Guelphic ()rdor. Upon being relieved bv the Lilo Guards on the ﬁlth instant, the Royals returned to Canterliiury. in consequence ol' the general elections for the county and city, the regiment on the 7th of December was detached as follows: the headquarters and 3 troops to Mai-gate; ‘2 troops to h‘aversham ; and one troop to Ospringe; the whole returning to Canterbury on the 25th olf i‘l‘c inonlh. do he cont/marl.)

SOUTH AFRICAN LETTERS.

Near SMITHFIELD, SOUL September, 1901. Dean M, Having rejoined‘the regiment alter two days’ march from Bethulio. we went on to places being

deserted, camped (or rather bivouacked, as we have not been bothered with tents since early in May,) near the latter place on the 6th, and commenced scouring the country round about.

By the

135

taining as it did a large supply of fresh meat and other food. as well as clothing. We burnt the place, together with a lot more stuff found in an adjacent cave. This part of the country is dotted over with kopjes, and is destitute of trees. except near farms, which usually boast an orchard and a few willow and blue-gum trees which l'ringe the dammed-up spruit, the particular feature of the South African farm and necessary for watersupply during the dry season. There is plenty of game here—springbok and other species of antelope—hut they are shy of mankind and require too much stal sing, l'or which we have no time, to ot'len grace our board, One day, on outpost duty, I saw a tine specimen ofa wild cat. It had ayellowish grey skin, with a dark stripe along the back and darkish stripes along the sides. Being of an enquiring turn of mind, it came up to within twenty paces of us. Perhaps it was hungry and smelt- the mutton the men were cooking : however, it didn’t wait for a trooper who endeavoured to approach it with a piece of meat in one hand and a bigr stick in the other.

ln Bivouac,

Smithlield and Rouxville, both

EAGLE

llth it seemed fairly

clear,a scoreot prisoners passing through our hands from Smithtield, and about lifty having surrendered, I Whilst on patrol one day We came across a larm hidden in a. kloof, which had evidently soiitri'escaped notice. lt was quite intact,

‘and bore evidence of recent occupation, con-

in spite of the would—be assassin’s alluring "puss, puss, poor puss ‘. " l was fortunate on another occasion in seeing an ant-bear. an animal rarely seen, as it usually stops at home all day and comes out It is a curious-look. of its burrow at night ing beast, with a pig's head and skin, some; what batvlike ears, a short hairless tail. and tremendous claws set in muscular limbs. The claws are used to tear down the walls of ants' nests——ants, as its name implies, forming its principal diet. The most characteristic birds round our present location are the secretary-bird, ﬂamingo, and the vulture.

The ﬁrst named

with its long head feathers sticking out he» hind, like pens behind the ear of a. civil service 'clerk, struts along with a most comic gravity, its long legs and bobbing tail puts you in

136

THE

EAGLE ’1‘ U E

mind of an extremely thin professor with his

ponies all told,

hands under his coat tails.

lected some thirty, when the remainder of the

All this foregoing matter savours more of a naturalist on tour than a. soldier on active service, but really up to the 24th we had no

troop arrived and we mounted

ﬁghting and saw little of the enemy.

On that

date, however. Boers were seen on a hill and were ﬁred upon, while on the following day one of our troops had a skirmish with forty of the enemy near Smithﬁeld. It

became evident that things were looking up. After a thirtymile march next night we caught a Boer in bed ; this sounds paltry enough, but the capture was of much more importance than appears, as, we gleaned much information from the prisoner, who, I am told,

volunteered to guide us to a farm where nine or ten Boers usually slept. My troop made up to ﬁfty strong, under the personal command of the Squadron Leader, set out at 9 PM. next night with the prisoner secured to a trooper who had orders to shoot him if he tried to escape or give any warning to his friends. After riding eighteen

miles we arrived at the spot; half the men were left with the horses and the remainder

of us proceeded on foot to surround the farm pointrd out by the prisoner. The house was situated in a small valley within range of hills on either side.

Itis a curious sensation to

approach a place held by the enemy at night, even if you expect to catch him asleep, as there is always achance he is not, but is waiting to greet you with a volley, However, we

reached the house, secu red several horses hob-

We had unfastened

A few paces

further a dog barked close by on our left.

halted and stared into the_darkness»the moon had disappeared by this time—and could discern several dark figures lying round something white which proved to be the cover ofa Cape cart We literally jumped off our horses and rushed forward, yelling “ Hands up ! "' For afew minutes there was a devi of a row. Dozens of dim figures sprang up from where they had evidently been lyingin groups, and what with the shooting, and the shouting in English and Dutch, they must have imagined the whole British at my was upon them, for turning tail they went and stood not upon the order of their going, in some cases leaving their boots and coats behind the m, We chased andfired atthe vanishing figures. but it was too dark to take aim. We took prisoners a veldtcornet, named du Toil, and eight

men, one

whom

was

wounded,- aiso thirty-six horses and saddles— the clothes and stull‘ the enemy had left her hind we collected in a heap and set tire to, and as the place we were in was within easy range of the surrounding hills, we cleared out before daybreak and took up a position a few miles away whence we sent information to the regiment. Reinforcements arrived about ll A_M. and we chased the enemy off the hills We had one man wounded, shot through the shoulder, and i hear thatone dead Boer was found at the foot of the hill.

longed (‘?) but that they hadjcome a long way and were tired out. They must have been, for we tore down a wire fence within twenty yards of their biVouac when collecting their horses However, “ Ali‘s well that ends well," and

we allagree that we out.

had a jolly good night Yours, etcl. OLxOL

HORSE MANAGEMENT IN INDIA. BY OoL. H. or: ll. on LisLE, 0.8, D.S.O.

it is customary to delay the first clippingr until the winter coat is fully developed, but I can see no object in this except to save 5: ud grooms the labour of a second clipping lf horses are in fast work, such as hunters. troop horses and polo ponies. they should be clipped as soon as the coats are long enough to cause discomfort by undue sweating. A month later they must be clipped again, and probably a third time in December or Janu-

even at the risk of lung troubles.

this idea

Some well-

bred horses, if warmly rugged and bandaged, do not require clipping even in winter, but those which carry heavy coats should be clip-

ing most of the men back for our horses we

arrived an hour before we surprised them, and that he didn‘t know how many were in laager,* or to what commando the others be-

ped before being put into fast work. The question of clipping the legs or le-tving the longhair below the lino of the rug is one which

and were surprised to make out in the dim light of the setting moon, the shadowy forms of horses grazing. On approaching those nearest we found they were hobbled, while some had blankets on. There must have been over a hundred

* Commandant Joubert, during a conversation on 28th November, 190], told the writer there Were one hundred and forty in laager on the night referred to

above, and that he himself escaped with difficulty, being hampered with a wounded knee. I may add that when the writer mentioned that the British force were but ﬁfty strong, he appeared highly incredulous.

of the blood-supply, and though a well rugged body will keep the legs warm, every assistance should be given by the application of bandages, or by leaving the legs unclipped. To counteract cold, more nitrogenous food is required to maintain health. Warm cloth» ing is therefore an economy and not an expense It is an undoubted fact that after the removal of the coat less corn is necessary. Thishas never been scientiﬁcally explained to my own satisfaction. but i conclude that to supply the hair much nutriinenr is ttken from the skin which would otherwise go towards the forming of muscle and to supply wastage.

Had the enemy been

Du Toit told me he and his party had only

tremities, the ears, feet, and legs, these being

furthest from the heart which is the centre

I will now discuss clothing and clipping Although horses in a state of nature do not require clothing owing to the length of coat being dependant on the degree of cold, to work horses with long coats would soon dis— tress them. ltis customary, therefore, to re— move long coats by clipping, and to replace the natural protection against cold with warm clothing. To remove the coats without increasing the clothing is a form of cruelty which may result in the loss of the horse. At the same time Troop horses doing fast work, for which the clothing is limited, can be main» tained ina better state of health if clipped

on the alert, we should have had a hot timer

walked a few hundred yards down the valley,

137

Continued.)

ver in hand, and found——nothing! Our worthy hosts were having a night out. Send

bled near, posted men all round, entered revol-

We were very lucky.

E A G L E

and col-

depends on circumstances

Horses which are

supplied with ample bedding, and have all four legs bandaged at night, are the better for being clipped all round. Those like 'l‘roop horses, which are not so carefully provided for against cold should be clipped to the edge of the rug only. Gold is first felt in the ex-

ary.

l have often heard it recommended that

no Troop horse should be clipped after December .5th, bccause the summer coat begins to show in January, but again l see no object in On the other hand, to work horses

in January or February with long coats increases the waste of tissue owing to profuse sweating which might have l-een avoided by an extra clipping. Polo ponies in England are clipped throughout the summer, it being found that they work better and require -less corn without even coats, and

their short summer

certain many

horses, pig»

sticking in lndln in April, would be the better for having the clippers run over them, The style of horse-clothing required in

India

depends on the Climate.

North of

Lahore the Afghan wadded rugs are wanted,

'1‘ H E

but elsewhere the most economical pattern is blanket backed with canvas. After clipping, a second blanket beneath the rug is necessai y. Hoods are not usually necessary, except in racing stables, but it is well to have a couple of hoods at hand for use with horses with colds or inﬂuenza. To a careful housekeeper the cost of stable accessories may often seem ruinous, but they must realise that itis very false economy to risk even the temporary loss of a horse for want of a small outlay which is not only necessary for the animal‘s comfort, but without which he cannot be kept lit [01' work. There is no old saw more true than : “For want of a nail a shoe was lost ; for want

of a shoe the horse was fame: for want of a horse the rider was shot; the message mis» carried, and the battle was lost. For want of a nail a kingdom was lost I" (To be continued}

LESSONS IN STRATEGY. THE

STUDY OF M‘ANA’IND.

Whata neglected ~cience this is, and yet one of the most important that can be studied by any man, whatever walk of life he may be in. A learned professor, speaking recently at the meeting of the British Association, come

plained that it had always been kept too much in the oaca’ground, and that far more

time had oeen spent on Z )ology than Anthropology Yet one of the most quoted phrases

is that of the poet Pope, viz, “The proper study of mankind is man,” and also the wellknown couplet ‘

'l‘he keen research, the exercise of mind,

That best of arts, the art to know mankind.’:

It can readily be understood how important the knowledge of the human race and human nature must be to the statesmen who have

to administer an Empire which

comprises

within its borders nearly every race in the world. Yet history proves how little of this knowledge they have possessed. How is it

THE

EAGLE possible for them to decide on the great and momentous questions, which are constantly recurring, without the knowledge of the races and characteristics of mankind. How can they pretend to legislate concerning the present complicated question of Asiatic im. migration into our colonies of South Africa, Canada and Australia, without knowledge of this kind? Are not the questions of grant. ing constitutions toEgypt and lndia intimatelyhound up with the knowledge of these races? Jrlow can any politician understand the Balkan question without the study of Ethnology, a question whicn involves such races as Turks, Serbs, Bulgars. Greeks, Roumanians, etc. But let us turn to see how the study ail‘ects us, and consider how important this subject is to the soldier. Does the sportsman go out to kill a tiger or any other kind of game without the full knowledge of the nature and habits of the animal which he is out after? In the defence of the British Empire. we may have to fight against any species of man kind, from the finest specimen of the Euro— pean down to the most primitive aborigines; ard it is essential to know the national character. the special traits, and the mode of fighting of the race against whom we are to take the field. And it is almost the most important point of all, for the Commander-in. Chief and his subordinates to specialize in a close study the character of the opposing commander and his officers. Now let history prove these assertions. It was said of the great Duke of Marlborough (who was the first full Colonel of The Royal Dragoons), that he was “ as able a negotiator as a general. and that though exceedingly ignorant of books, was extremely knowing of men.” Here in the last few words may perhaps be summed up the mainspring of his greatness. There have been many generals,

who have had nearly all the qualities necessary to become great, but have lacked that essential attribute, “the

knowing of men.”

At the commencement of the Waterloo campaign, Napoleon had the forces of the allies separated in front of him ; the British under Wellington, and the Prussians under Blucher. Be wished to defeat them in detail, before they could concentrate. Napoleon chose to hold Wellington at Quatre Bras, while he defeated Hlucher at Ligny. Why”? Because hehad studied the characters of Wellington He knew that and Blur-her respectively. chOOse his and vro manmu would gton Wellin own time and place of ﬁghting. which was But he knew to a 081" not what he wanted, cher would Tight dediﬁlu hot-hea the that tainty . directly he saw him anywhere and anyhow

The smell of powder was enough for old “ Marshai Vorwarts.” But Napoleon did not know the British soldiers so Well as Soult did, as he had never fought against them, and had only seen their dust when he started in pursuit of Sir John Soult knew their characteristics Moore Peninowing to bitter experience during the well sularDWar. When things were not going n, Napoleo to ed at Waterloo, Soult remark the on die ;they British the ‘ Sire, 1 know ground, on which they stand rather than lose it." This cl’iaracteristic brings to mind the story of the Highlander who was asked whether he had not been afraid of the battle did na fear being lost ; he replied, “ Na, na, 1 be a’ shou’d we afraid that; I was only

killed before we had time to win it." in the year 1864, th Prussians, in alliance with the Austrians, were fighting the Danes. During this war they set themselves to study the Austrian army and its command ers, feeling that it was almost a certainty that they would have to try conclusions with the Thus,in 1866, Austrians in near future. Prussia made War, during the Seven Weeks’ effect to fatal With dge knowle her of use Austria. During the ﬁrst years of the American a Civil War, we ﬁnd in Stonewall Jackson, past master in the art of the study of the

EAGLE

139

opponent. Jackson suited his strategy and tactics in accordance with the character of the hostile leader; and he traded on the great cautiousness and inactivity of Banks to an extent that he could not have done in the face of a more energetic and capable man. Both Jackson and Lee seemed to be able to read Lincoln‘s mind as though it had been an open book. Lincoln was always afraid for the safety of Washington, and any threat on that city was enough to unnerve him and cause him to change his plans, and to curb his offensive. Jackson‘s advance up the Shenandoah Valley in 1862 caused Lincoln to detain round Washington 40.000 men, whom McClellan needed so much at Richmond, and with whose help the war could perhaps have been concluded at that time owing to the great superiority in numbers which the Federals would have possessed. General Grant wrote after the war, “ All the older officers. who became conspicuous in the rebellion, I had served with, and known

in Mexico. The acquaintance thus formed was of immense value to me in the War of the the ltebellion,—l mean what l learnt of

Characters of those to whom l was afterwards opposed. 1 do not pretend to say that them, my movements, or even many of the to ce referen were made with Special

all

characteristics of the commander against ia whom they were directed; out my apprec by affected ly certain tion of my enemies was this knowledge. ” This article seems to be getting unduly the long, and it is only possible to remind the by made e estimat correct the of reader war. Germans of the French during the 1870 se In the late Russo-Japanese war, the Japane and ous ponder the tood unders hly thoroug chances, slow moving Russian, and took a against taken have which they would not The Russrans never dissimilar opponent

took the trouble to understand the Japanese an tly thinking of them merely as

apparen would inferior Asiatic tribe, whose overthrow be more of a picnic than serious war.

THE

EAGLE THE

How wrong our estimate of the power of the Boer Republics was is also still fresh in our minds. No one can say that this study of the 0p ponent’s character is not one of the most important points in the science of strategy and is not intimately bound up with the military art. The national characteristics are carried into the ﬁeld from the Field-

Marshal down to the private soldier, and unless they are closely studied, success will not be obtained and perhaps disaster may ensue. E). M.

went on board one of the gun-boats with my senior officer and myself, and the two gunv boats started off for the scene of operations. The plan was that our men, together with forty bluejackets and a nine-pound er gun,

were to be towed up the creek in dhows by two pinnaces. Starting at midnight we were then to lie in wait near the village before dawn until the women came out to draw water as was the custom in those parts, when we were to rush into the village and capture and destroy it. It was estimated that by starting at midnight we could arrive in nice

This is the story as my military friend told "’ It was in the year of grace 1896, if 1 remember rightly, that the following incident occurred, and it may be considered entertaining enough to merit rescue from the oblivion in which, so far as I know, it has been buried. At that time East Africa, which had been governed bya Company, was handed over to the Home Government. Under the Company’s guardianship a certain warlike ma-

too hot to drink, one of the sentries

let off

coming with us. However, ‘ M an proposes and God disposes ‘ It was found far more difﬁcult to ascend the creek than had been anticipated, as it

of our luncheon basket, which with much care

time and bring the (*0in off successfully.

Accordingly we moved oil", the Captain of

it :

chosen the policy of prudence and cleared, There was nothing for it but to sit down and brew the coffee which the blue jackets had brought with them. While it was yet his rifle. Therefollowed immediately a scene of wild confusion. The sailors dashed for their nine-pounder and our men stood to The cause of the shot soon, their arms however, transpired. A villager, who had apparently been on leave, had returned to his home in ignorance of what had occurred during his absence, and was very much sur— prised at his reception. As there was nothing more to be done we started back 0 the creek, and what- was my annoyance to ﬁnd that the blue-jackets, left in charge of the boats, had eaten the contents

the larger gun-boat and his hast Lieutenant

AN UNRECORDED INCIDE NT.

EAGLE

was

full of sandbanks and hippopotami. Every few minutes progress was retarded by the pinnaces plunging into these banks and com-

ing to a dead stop, when the dhows would

and forethought we had packed and brought with us. However, we said nothing. A further delightful surprise was that all the boats were high and dry, the naval

141

We finally reached the gun-boats, and so ended an adventure which, as junior of the party, i had enjoyed to the utmost, the only thorn in the rose being the abduction of our lunch. Altogether it was the finest little piece of opera boufi'e that had probably ever been performed outside of the Savoy. It must also he devoutly hoped that the cooperation between the Army and the Navy in the next amphibious expedition, which will possibly be on alarger and more important scale, may be more successful.”

E. M.

SERGEANTS’ MESS NOTES. As the result of a burst of quite unaccountable energy on the part of the Entertain-

ment Committee, we have been almost ‘giddy’ in the mess since last i wrote. ously noted, the fashionable form mentis the Whist Drive, and thatit is proved by the fact that it will draw a large crowd of people while

As previof amuseis popular invariably its rival,

come charging up behind and crash into the fastrlield pinnaces; thus causing endless confusion l)8fnl'e the obstruction was cleared and a restart made. Long and deep were the

authorities evidently overlooking the fact of

and former favourite, the dance, attracts only

there being such a thing as atide. Much work and slithering about waist.dcep in mud was occasioned before the sailors re-floated

but

curses of the sailors at the sandbanks and the

when Government assumed control this gentleman was no longer subsidised, and so decided to make himself disagreeable. Accordingly a native infantry regiment, which had been recently raised, was sent to Mombasa to copewith him, acting in con junction. with the Naval gun-boats in that region. The man was eventually driven into German territory and captured by the Germans. It was during this little war that the

hippos, and after frequent checks daylight

the boats, and we moved off. We again experienced great difﬁculty in threading the intricate passage of the creek,

a meagre attendance. Each of the four units in the station holds a Whist Drive once during the month, onaWednesday night (Thursday being the military holiday, this is as it should be), but we have gone one better, for the past few Saturdays have seen us giving similar entertainments in an abbreviated form, distinguished by the name of “Practice Whist Drive. ” Oneimportant factor in the superiority of the Whist Drive over the dance is that it affords entertainment equally for both

rauder on the coast had been in its pay,

facts I am about to narrate occurred.

There was a stockaded village some way down the coast from Mombasa. and about seven miles from the end of a narrow creek, ﬁve miles long, and this village it was arrang' ed to surprise and capture. About forty of my men (Mahsud Waziris)

came and found us still far from

our

object-

we. The Naval Captain who was by this time much enraged at the niisca: riage of the plan and exasperated beyond endurance with the,

hippopota mi. ordered his sailors to ﬁre into them A rapid fusiilade then ensued, which was subsequently stopped with great difficulty after nearly a hundred rounds had

been expended.

By this

time the military

commander was livid with rage at this coup (Ive grace to a surprise of any kind upon which

his hopes still lingered. It was nearly midday before the Villaee was reached, when, naturally, all We fouiid was the village, its late inhabitants having

and many disputes occurred

between the

Captain and his first Lieutenant as to where

"the passage was. The irate Captain slipped off his boat to demonstrate that there was absolutely no passage where his subordinate said there Sudwas. The Lieutenant urged him on denly the Captain disappeared from view, and as he came up spluttering, his disrespectful Lieutenant calmly observed: ‘Tbat’s the channel, sir, I told you so '

A little later on

strikinganother sandbank, the Captain in his excitement pushed two of our men into the They fell into water to lighten the boat deep water and sank like stones and were with much difficulty rescued.

sexes.

At this time of the year the difﬁculty

is to ﬁnd dancing men, for while the ladies,

having practically nothing else to do, turn up in strength to a ‘ hop,’ the men do not ; or if

they do, they are so blasa’and ungallant as to

prefer a game of cards or billiards to display— ing the pattern of their braces through their sweat-sauqrated white duck jackets. Some even haven’t this amount of energy, and this class will lay itself out in a ‘ long ’ chair, with

‘ < t—ﬂ—r—r 1W mm.

140

142

THE

EAGLE 4105. Corp]. ’I‘h‘rkcttlc re engaged to complete twentyone years with the colours. .l " 4112. Corpl. Fitch u " ” 4191, Tptr. (loodbody Corpl. Rickeard entended to complete twelve years with the colours. n .r u Cm‘pl Parrotti .5 Measures “ . lice-Corpl. Solver u . u go “ Summerﬁold “ Ryder " 'l‘rokr: Shnckell Vicki-ry ’n #Hrny Pritchmd " “ " Corpl. Lanilwrt l’U'. Alll‘l‘ll

“ Fred“ Cope, writes from Sargodha h’emount a smoke and a drink, and for '. matter of several hours contemplate the sorties of the lizard family, out on the mess verandah wall for its nightly feed. And what of the ladies ? The few gay and energetic spirits who brave the discomfort of wet shirts. and are utterly

insinuation, may have been inspired by the facts that his second table was directly beneath the punkah, fairly near the bar, and approximate to the eye of a very attractive unattached maiden. who was equally not an

reckless of the sad droop of their once beau

evening was spent. being brought to a close by musical and elecutionziry items from C dour-Sergeant Mch‘adg‘en, H. L. I , PioneerSergeant Morris, King’s Own Regiment. Ser-

tifully curled moustachios,

and the lankness

of their once neatly-brushed hair, are not enough to go round, and Mrs. Smith is doomed to a night of “ splendid isolation," while Mrs. Jones experiences the felicity of an evening spent in watching her lord and master fritter away the ween’s housekeeping money in a rash endeavour to demonstrate to three. gentlemen of his squadron how bridge should be played. Therefore, as I have tried to show, the Whist Drive is a gent-rally welcome in novation The following are the winners of the three last Whist Drives held :— Augz/sl 18th— Best Lady

Mrs. Timson

Best (gent

Sergeant bimpson.

Master-

ailor

Best Gent

lst Prize, Ladies’...

geant

Chadwick,

However, a right merry

King’s

Own

Regiment.

School muster Bradley, H L. l,, Mrs. liradley,

and Messrs. Cronin and Norton. From homeI have news of still another newly-made husband. Sergeanthlajor Col-lie, our Fencing Instructor and Cirrus Alillillgtll" Heis at present on furlough. and was mar ried to Miss Edith Exell in London on the 29th July

Iluinour. too, is very busy with the

name of :in erstwhile

unsuspected

deserier

from the bachelor brotherhood. and we shall not be surprised to hear that our friend “ (.‘ha‘ ” Cooke is hringinaz~ a wife out with him, The inevitable result ofihis state of affairs will bachelors

will refuse to

\lrs. Clapcott.

go on furlough, if this is

Q..\l. Sergt

climate does for one! Sergeant-Major Stuart, who is with the. Surrey Yeomanry under the adjutancy of Japtain Hardwickf writes, telling me some of his doings at the. Yeomanry Camp at Arundel. He met “Tiny ” White, whohad come to talie over some horses for the. West— minster Dragoons. and also saw, ats‘ish. an old

Murray, ELL 1.

September 11m 2nd

authority on whist !

be that determined

Ally/HM 2‘1/1. Best Lady

143

EAHLE

THE-

Mrs.\\'iiliams. Bu‘ter Dish,

Miss A. Englehrigit.. Biscuit Jar. Consolation Prize, Ladies’, Miss Englebright. Bottle of Scent. I lst Prize, Genzs‘ Sergeant Hatclili'e. Safety Razor. 2nd ,, , .. Sergeant Lock. chavino Mirror. ’3 Consolation Prize, Gents’. 1.3.31.5. Underwood, H L 1.a “Golliwogg ”

’I‘hreeladies tied for second prize and had to draw for it, Miss A. Englebright winningr eventually. The Gents’ Consolation prize was awarded unanimously to “The Sheilah,” as our jovial El. L. I. friend is popularly known. as not only did he qualify in securing the least number‘ A 1" points. but also created a record in making only a 1wo~table progres; sion—a record, however, which, base as is the

what

the English

friend. “ Hooriey ” Walker, who left the Rent

ment as Sergeant alfew years ago. He frir ther says that“ Bill" Raven is It publicehousc proprietor at Blackwall Pier, “The Brunswick Tavern " What an ideal Boniface. “Old Bill” must be ! One can imagine him entertaining

Depot, Where he is now employed, and

tells

me he is comfortably situated, and doing well. He is in charge of 1,100 horses, and has some

amusing tales to tell of his Punjabi assistants, who. from his account, are perfect “ Handy Andys " for doing the wrong thing. Two old friends in the persons of Sergeant» Instructors Reimers and Hounsell, of the Surma Valley Light Horse, are at present undergoingarefresher course of drill with Reimers was formerly, of the Regiment course, 'l‘roop Sergeant in “C ” Squadron. whilst Hounsell is an ex-lfitli Hussar who has, however, spent several holidays with us. Mitchell, who left the Regiment a. few months ago to take up the post of Stable Superintendent to Sir Arthur Lawley in

’l'u: 1) Homl-(‘niitluot Undo; Is 510, We McArtliur. lst l‘r. C. Badge. Ilh‘li " Addison “ “ 80:3 “ Juuii-s "

Preparations are daily going on for our march to Muttra, and my next contribution will probably be written under the shade of a banyan tree, at the end ofadusty march, How the Editor proposes to have the paper printed at all. however, is just at present beyond me. But, I. suppose, everthing will be all right, which expression, by the way, reminds me that it is typical of the manner in which we dlSlIllSS anything from our minds that requires thought, or, worse still, work! " SERGEANT.“

“

Harris Blackmail

“

" “

Linn; nag/cs.

Major 111. I—‘itzll. M. Wood. I). S. (1., passed in Uighur Standard, Part I.

Hindustani

Certificates. SUM. Pte. Holland. 2nd Class, Educational. “SS “ Arnold “ “ " “ Blake “ “ " “ Levett " " “ " Ball. 3rd ‘ “ Moore “ '" “ " Mitchel awarded certificate for Shocmaking ‘ Cuwnpore. Furlong/Ir and. Leave.

Capt. Szimlhachiii India, from 3rd September, 11109.

Marriages. Promotions and A ppoiizlnzcnls.

an"), ., rims 45111, .‘1518, 1164 . 3 0:321

(owl Cl't'Sszlll appointed Unpaid Lce.-Sorgcnnt. 1,00 ACnrnl. McDouall piomotecl Corporal. " ‘ Richardson " Unpaid Lce ~Corpl. Hnndy appointed Paid LanceCorporal. Pte. Ryder, appointed Unpaid Lance-Corporal. " “ “ “ Love. “ “ " Vickory ‘ " “ “ Grey " “ “ Kingsley Scrrtcr.

5278. Soret. (loddiird extended to complete twelve year,

Hiding

Show

REGIMENTAL GAZETTE.

handto-hand scuflies with hordes of savage natives, the things so popularly inseparable from life in the purple East L [{ough

“

“ "

30th (lctober,1£l0$l.

412T, R.Q.M. Sorgt. Cronin re-enga‘ged to complete twenty-ono years with the coiours.

Our late “ Broncho Bill” of the Circus,

305

8411 5411

Madras, is, Ihear, doing well.

his patrons with stirring tales of sin/arr, and

otherwise

Hull‘milll (lnsrli-

with the colours. 5336, Sorgt. Vanson “ 3 “ Angus Stalker lr‘lunih

(. i.

to Corkc S.S.M.I.F. & Ll. George Strezitham ‘n 3"th July, 1900.

Edith

Exell

Jlorex

l. 743, Pro. Frost returned from Nu‘niTa h ‘* " " Price £1751 Camp. 1934, Boy Plumley to Manors 3083. Pro. Rogers to Landonr. “ " Rogers 3223 “ Murchant to Naini Till on furlough. 543 h. 4654, Sergt. Benn to Rawal Pindi on furloug h. 4354. Tptr. Jackson to Landour on furloug Strength.

Reserve in 5195,1’to. Sutton transferred to the Army India. establishment. 5276. Pto. Connett transferred to the Home

Sergeant-Major l'RlN’l‘l‘Tl'l FUR

EDITOR

l;\'

Mltlilv

AT THE METHODIST PUBLISHING

HOUSE.

LL’CKNOV'.

obi Eagle. A MONTHLY CHRONICLE OF THE ROYAL DRAGOONS. “ SPECTEMUR AGENDO.” FRIDAY, OCIOBER 15TH, 1909.

VOL. III.

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS.

EDITORIAL NOTICES. LUCKNOW. INDIA.

“ l

it"ubscrii/ers in Indliu r"

, 4 ’on-commixsionet ojzcers ant men (prexent members or e.L'-It’oyals), £11,: Z375;

per annum

1909,

.08. ad.

13:}. 5-3—0

“

, , ,gs'yfﬁ'}

‘ “

1’03! free

OUTOHER,

Subscriptions to “ The anle“ are as follow.» :— .. .4 Subscribers at home. per annum ..

,, o—x-o .. .. Price per copy to officers .. 0—1-0 men .. Price per copy to non-commissioned othcers and to the Editor. sent be should and advance. in due are ns Suhrcriptio ed in acknowledg be will 0/0 The Royal Prat/0027.8. All remittances the next. number of the paper published after receipt. on leare or proceeding addresses, their (:hanaino Subscribers Editor of the furlough. or leaving the Regiment should notify the new adllrexs. can he had and stock in kept are copies back of number A limited on application to the Editor.

" The Eagle “ All communications intended for publication in only. addressed to the should be written on one ride of the paper 'te ’5‘ name and addrem. it the by ed accompani be should and Editor. for any rejected The Editor will not undertake to he respo specially desired to .IIS., nor to return any contribution. unless

0 so.

than the 5th of Contributions should reach. the Editor not later month's issue. each month. to ensure publication in that

are linked to commuMembers. past and present. .or their friends to be of interest. to our nicate to the Editor any item of notes likely that news of ew-menzhers readers. It has been noticed particularly and such commuis rewarded with great interest by pretfent Royals, maintaining that link nicationx are the means of eetablia .mo and object of the paper. between past and present. which is the primary him any inquiThe Editorfurther invites readers to submit to by reason of harinp access to ries which. he may be able to ansa' as possible. be dealt for as 'lt'Lll. These records. al the Reutment Where necessary. a reply with under “ Answers to Correspondents."

by letter will be sent. on application. to RatesforAdvertisements can be ascertained the Editor.

the followWm beg: to acknowledge with thanks the receipt of ing: contemporaries :—

General Godmun Captain Hardwick Captain Parsons

Major McNeile R. A. 'I‘. A.. Aug. Coffee Shop. Aug. Setup—Instr, Reimors

. .

.£ 0

llOGoOwOO*%

“ The X. RH “ St George‘s Gazette.” “ The White Lancer," Times.“ “ Army Guzctic.“ "H. L, I. Chronicle." ”The Mussoorie t (luzctteﬁ‘ Service Corps Journal." ” The Essex Regimen received :— The following subscriptions to The Eagle have been

he had on application. lﬂlsolinu copies of Volume II, 1908. can Price. Rs. 5 (£0-63-8d) per copy.

C. W. P.—M any thanks. Your subscription will not now expire until August, 1912. Hope you are well. “ BOGNOR ”—Thanks for paper. See “ Monthly Notes.” P. E. H.—M any thanks for inieresbing letter which goes in this number. “ YEOMAN.”—See “ Monthly Notes.” The paper will continue to be printed in Lucknow for the presents.

E. G. B.—Trusb all is now well with you. W. G. C.—Thanks for interesting cutting. Salaams. “POLICEMAN.”—No. Colonel deLisle rejoins at, Muibra just prior to the arrival of the regiment. “CURIOUS ”—The Indian Establishment allows ﬁve Squadron Quartermaster-Sergeants. the extra. one usually being employed as Regimental Pay

Sergeant. SEVERAL INQUIRERS—The new quarterly

clothing

allowance in the case of Unattached men. Yolunteer staff. etc, is not drawn from the Regi-

menb, but from same source as, and together with, pay of rank.

MONTHLY NOTES. It is, perhaps, a matter of some annoyance that we are unable, at present, to ﬁnd fault with the condition of the weather. There is a. healthful nip in the early morning air, the

days are merely warm, and the nights are quite pleasant. There is no rain. yet the monsoon is too recent 3. happening to give us the opportunity of grumbling at the dust nuisance. Failing the weather, we seek, therefore,

for something else on which to explode our choicest expletives. Know this characteristic weakness 0f the British soldier, a wise and paternal Army Headquarters provides

146

THE

EAGLE

THE

us at once with an object in the shape of our _

blindpurselves to any compensating plea-

move to Muttra.

sures in connection with our move.

The winter in Lucknow is simply delightful, the weather comparing favourably with

As will be readily understood, our forth. coming march is keeping us busy with preparations. It is no easy matter to move a regiment, lock, stock and barrel, after nearly six years‘ residence in a station. Nevertheless we are going along nicely, and tasks that a week or two ago seemed colossal have been accomplished with comparative ease. By the time these lines appear in print, we should be ready to start, if, indeed, we are not already on the move.

that of the best sample of English spring. The United Provinces Government and the. 8th Division of the Northern Army have their winter headquarters here, and the historical interest attaching to this city attracts a large number of visitors. Apart from this, or per-

haps because of it, the two most important racing ﬁxtures (the Army Service Cup meetings) in

Cup and Civil Upper lndia,

are held here, respectively, in November and February, on the really ﬁne race-course, while polo, golf, football, and hockey tournaments, and horse, dog, and ﬂower shows, as well as theatrical performances, dances, and a hundred and one other sporting and social delights are events of daily occurrence.

We go out to our ﬁrst camp—Banthra, twelve miles distant—on the morning of the 18th instant. Major McNeile and a party of

147

EAGLE

ices. We all wish them ban voyage, and good luck in their new life. Incidentally, we also draw their attention to the subscription rates of The Eagle, and assure them that their comrades in India will always be glad to hear of them.

The hounds lately belonging to us, and now the property of the 8th Hussars, have

The following paragraph from “Aids to

The Manora detachment, under the command of Mr. FitzGerald, returned to the plains on the 26th ultimo Three days later an order was circulated that no troops were to leave the hills until the end of November, and our men may congratulate themselves on having escaped so early. Their journey down to

Scouting," by Major-General R. S. S. BadenPowell, 08., F. R.G.S., published by Gale and Polden, should be of interest :—

“ Sergeant Weston, Royal Dragoons, found the best place to carry a despatch was inside the bowl of a spare pipe, ready charged with tobacco, so that, if captured, either he or his captor would smoke it, and thus burn the despatch.” Weston, as most of our readers will know,

been reduced by sale to seven couple. They are still at NainiTal looking very ﬁt, but they are not likely to return to Lucknow until the end of the present month.

Lucknow was, we understand, by no means

enjoyable. They were packed like herrings, and the night was very hot. On reaching the junction at Bareilly, no one seemed to

acted as Scout-Sergeant during the South

know of their existence, and

non-commissioned ofﬁcers and men remain behind to hand over barracks to the 8th Hussars, who are expected to arrive in Lucknow

African campaign.

on 215t instant. This party will then proceed to Muttra, and take over from the ihth Hus-

A correspondent asks us to correct the following, which is taken from the Portsmouth Evening News. A similar report appeared

preparation of a train they had the pleasure of a six hours’ wait on the platform. However, “ all’s well that ends well,” and as they eventually reached head-quarters without losing themselves, they must not complain.

And yet, instead of having all this to look

pending the

sars, who leave that station for the port of forward to as a well-earned reward for a summer’s vegetation on the plains, we are condemned to move away on the very eve of

also in other Home papers '— embarkation (the 15th go to South Africa) on

or about 29th instant

The horses of that

regiment—which are Arabs, and, therefore,

it, and crawl for three weeks along a particuunsuitable for Dragoons—will be brought to larly uninteresting road, to take up our resiLucknow by road by a party of the 15th and

dence at what is popularly considered the dullest military stationin India. Apart from the one regiment stationed there, the European population consists, we believe, of a col-

handed over to the 8th.

We retain

our

horses. This party and the regiment meet on the march at Cawnpore, where an ex—

change of syces and transport takes place

lector (civil oiﬁcer) and a doctor, unless one cares to include the stationmaster, who, de« We travel only about 420 strong, as some

spite his accent and complexion, declares he is Scotch!

150 time-expired men, who proceed to England during the present

To be perfectly fair, we ought, of course, to take into consideration the healthy life of along and not arduous march, and the opportunities for successful and inexpensive shooting trips which Muttra and the district affords, but until the weather becomes un. pleasant, or something else offers itself as a target for our captions shafts, we prefer to

trooping season,

“ Sergeant-Major Rea, of the lst Royal Dragoons, was killed by a landslip while riding near Kasauli.” The fatality actually did occur, but the unfortunate man was Regimental Sergeant-Major A. E Rea, of the lst King’s Dragoon Guards, who was on leave from his regiment at Ambala. The similarity in the titles of the two regiments was doubtless responsible for the error. All ofﬁcers, with the exception of Colonel de Lisle, Major Steele, and C: ptain Grant, who will rejoin at Muttra, are due back from

will remain at Lucknow, pending their depar-

leave before the Regiment moves.

ture, whilst the ﬁrst draft from Home, numbering seventy, will proceed direct to Muttra

Sandbach, who, as our readers will remember, was asked to take over the Mastership of the Ootacamund Hounds, paid a visit to that part of the country, to Spy out the land. We now

from the port of disembarkation. We take this opportunity of bidding good— bye to those men leaving the regiment, They consist mostly of seven and eight years’ men, and the regiment is sorry to lose their serv.

Captain

learn that he has decided not to take on the duties of M. F. H., and he starts for England early this month.

In the three~a»side Polo tournament during the Naini Tal Civil Service Week, the Regiment was represented by a team, comprising Major Makins (back) and Messrs. Turner (2) and FitzGerald (I). They were unlucky in drawing, in the lst round, the 15th Hussars consisting of Captain Barrett (back) and Messrs. Bruen and Wells. Our side was well beaten by 10 goals to 4, after a good galloping game. For the 15th, Barrett was conspicuously good throughout,

and

was

unfortunate that,

owing to his having a bad leg, the team had to scratch, after playing us, as there can be little doubt they would have won the tournament. Major McNeile, who returned with Mrs. McNeile on the 27th September, had the misfortune to break his collar-bone at polo,

during his ﬁrst game.

The pony appears to

have crossed his legs, and came down heavily

THE

143

EAGLE

THE

his side Major McNeile i5, we hear, going on well, and we hope he will soon be perfectly well again.

particular period should prove very interest» ing.”

We have received the following from Cap-

“The Poona open Polo Tournament com-

The following is taken from The tain Hardwick :—

“ Perhaps the Regiment will be interested to hear some news of the

Memorial Fund.

Doubtless many of you will be wondering what on earth we are doing, and why, apparently, nothing has been done in the matter; but I can assure you that the Committee are in no way to blame for the delay. However, as regards the Memorial Tablet for St. Paul’s Cathedral, everything has been settled and arranged, and the work is being

pushed on rapidly. It has been decided that the new battle—honours shall be put on the tablet. Colonel Pearse, whom many will re— member at Lucknow when he commanded the East Surreys, and who is a member of the

menced on Monday, 13th September, when two games in the ﬁrst round were played. The ﬁrst game was between the Penguins and Government House Staff, and it was a great misfortune for the former that they were deprived of the services of Captain Tomkinson, who had a bad fall in the Hurdle Race on the previous Saturday. The following were the team :— Govcrnmeiit House vs. The Penguins. 1.

Capt.

Greig

Capt.

G. Lucas

Mr.Alderson.

Mr. Oolemore (Inniskillings). 2. Mr. Miles (Royal Dragoonsy 3. Capt. Badger (12th Royal Lancers). Capt. Truman (12th Royal Lancers) (back).

Major Martin (back).

War Olﬁce Committee dealing with these honours, tells me that there is still one more to come to us, a Peninsula one this time, though for which engagement, 1 don’t know. That will make ﬁve new honours for the Regiment. With regard to the actual

fund, I hope that by the time

the old Com-

rades’dinner comes round, there will be in existenceascheme for the distribution of the fund. I notice in the August number of The Eagle that you ask for information regarding Major Johnston, a descendant of Colonel Johnston, who commanded the Regiment during the Seven Years’ War, and who

was in possession of a diary relating to that campaign written by his ancestor

for

some months been

I have

making enquiries

about this, and [am informed

that

branch of the family is now extinct also informed that the diary in

that

I am

question is

Asian :—

Umpires c—Major England and Capt. Popham.

In the ﬁrst chukker

from the throw in

Badger ran the ball to the end where two assaults were repulsed. Then Lucas relieved the pressure and worked the ball to the opposite end, where, after one failure, Greig scored. On change of ends, play was in midﬁeld fora space. Then Greig brought

the ball to the Penguins’ end, where the Staff pressed. The ball finally went out wide of the flags. 1n the second chukker, after Greig had had one more run to the flags, the Penguins brought the ball out to the centre, where Miles’ pony tooka roll, but, being quickly remounted, play was resumed. The Staff held the ball for a while. Then Martin ran it to the flags and shortly out of a melee witha backhander scored. ' Changing ends the Penguins

attacked, and a foul

was

now in possession of Lord de la Warr, into whose family Colonel Johnston married. I am writing to Lord de la Warr to ask him if

given against the Staff. Badger took the penalty shot, and with a clean hard drive sent the ball through. Play soon centred in the

this is the case, and if so, if he will allow us to

Penguins’ end ; here there was hard attack

have a copy of the diary, as a journal of that

and defence till the ball went out.

The Staff

EAGLE

had now two goals to one. In the third chukker, which opened near midﬁeld, Miles working the ball to the Staff's end, pressed in front of the ﬂags, and Oolemore, with a smart shot, scored. On change of ends the Penguins were again on the offensive, and Badger, being well served, scored and gave his team a lead of one goal. The fourth chukker

opened on the border of the Staff’s ground whence Lucas and Martin diverted play to a the Penguins’ ground. Truman, with of venue the changed strong backhander, Then Alderson gota ﬁne run to the play

flags, but, being baulked near the flags, Greig nipped in and put the ball through, chukker equalising the scores. In the fifth Staif s the Penguins worked the ball to the flags. the at shot end. where Badger had-a

The-n Martin, bringing in the ball, Alderson With had a clear run to the flag, but missed of his ﬁnal shot just at the mouth

the

ﬂags

At the call of time the score was unchanged. midfield In the sixth chukker play was about out went ball the but till Martin got a run, it ran in, it bringing Penguins, the wide and then and across the ground. Martin saved worked play settled in midfield till the Stafi the Staff the ball to the opposite end, where

got a penalty shot for a foul.

Alderson,

scored. getting on a long pass by Lucas,

The

when ﬁnal Staff were again on the attack four goals time was called, and they won by . to three.” Poona The following notes of the Racing at

dates:— are taken. from The Aalan of various Rs. 2,000 “The Poona Grand Annual. Value and Rs. second, nthe t 700 Rs. winner, the to race for huordle 360 to the third. A handicap

horses.

About 2 miles over 9 ﬂights.

Mr. Cosens’ Umutbee, lOst_, 11o. LC. Hoyt The Arab Pony Plate—3 furlongs. Mr, Rube’s St Gatin, Capt. ’Eomkinson.. . ..

‘ ..... a).

Lz‘ngﬁeld Plate—6 furlongs. Mr Ruhe's Nettle, Capt. Tomkinson . . . Bea'nrlers’ Rate—Half mile.

Mr. Rube’s Nagashi, Southall. Hurst larlc Plum v6 furlongs. Mr. Miles’ Redshot, Owner......... Kempion Par/c Plltf’. -5 furlongs. M r. Mile~’ White Heather, OWrier Lint le Arab Plut- - 5 furlongs. Mr. Rube’s N lgashi, ilapt. 'l‘omkinson . . . .. . . .... . l. “ * * won a splendidly ridden race by one and a marter lengths '5 * " The Ye, mudu. Plate Over 7 ﬂights. Mr. (Yosens’ Umuthee, ll. C. Hoyt.. Poona Grand Nutmnal~Steeplechase, miles. 1 furlong. Mr. Mil s’ idle,

Owner................ .. Novim Handicap Plate—5 furlongs. Mr. Rnne’s Nagashi,

Capt. Tomkinson ... . . ..... Open Polo Plate—3 furlong's.

Capt, Tomkiiison’s Chinook, Owner.... Arab Pony Plate—6 furlongs. Mr. Rube’s Nettle,

”apt. Tomkinson..

.. ..

Sundown Pm 7c Plate. Mr. Ruoe’s Chassepot, Capt. Tomkinson ........... 2.

Mr. Cosens’ Umutbee, Capt. Meynell .............. 3. mile. Little Arab Harldlmp—Balf a

, Mr. Wyndham Quin’s Prince Chestnut .... ...l. Capt 'I‘nmkinson.. The Gatw/olc Plate—One mile. Mr. Rube’s The Munshi, Capt, ’I‘omkinson.. . . . . ..

150

THE

EAGLE THE

In the Autumn Polo Tournament at Rugby

relieved by the Life Guards, the Royal Dra-

Colonel de Lisle has been playing for the Tigers in company with Count de Madre, Cap»

goons left Brighton for embarkation at Bris-

tain Bingham, and Colonel Chunda Singhg They won the ﬁrst two rounds easily, and in the semi-ﬁnals, met Hillmorton, consisting of Messrs. Merlin, F. Rich, Balding and Gordon Withers. The match was very evenly contested, and at the opening of the last chukker the score was 4 goals all. Hillmorton. however, by a burst of superior combination, added 2 goals ‘ and won the game by 6 to 4.

tol, and in the course of this march, owing to the severity of the weather and the condition of the roads, some difﬁculty and several ac~ cidents occurred, both in England and after arrival in Ireland, where the regiment landed at Dublin on the 18th of January, the headquarters proceeding direct to Newbridge, with detached troops at Kells, Navan, Carlow, and Kilkenny. On the 28th of May, died very suddenly at Ripley, in Surrey, Lieutenant-Colonel Somer-

set, who the day following was succeeded by A correspondent forwards as a copy of Ike Animal World, the organ of the Royal Society

Major Martin, K.H., who had been several years in the 2nd Life Guards, with which

for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

corps he had served in the Peninsula, the

This contains a photograph of our late regimental pet dog, “Sc rut,” wearing the two

sequent services to the present time.

south of France, and at the battle of Water100. On the 80th of the same month. Lieutenant the Honourable Joshua Vanneek died in Newbridge Barracks from the effects of an accident which had happened to him a few days previous On the 31st of March, 1836, the colonelcy 0f the Royal Regiment of Dragoons having be come vacant by the transfer of Lord R. E. Somerset to the 4th Queen’s Own Light Dra-

By General C. P. de Ainslie.

goons, it was conferred upon Major—General

South African medals. A brief paragraph deals with the extraordinary history of our dearly loved little dog.

HISTORICAL RECORD Of the First or the Royal Regiment of Dragoons, containing an account of its formation in the reign of King Charles the Second, and of its sub-

(Continued)

The head-quarters of the Royal Dragoons

the Honourable Sir Frederic Cavendish Pon— sonby, K.C.B., K.C.H, G.C.M.G., from the 86th Foot.

left Canterbury on the 4th of March, 1833,

The regiment left Newbridge for the Royal

for Dorchester, whence a troop was subse-

Barracks, Dublin, on the 7th of May, and in

quently detached to Weymouth, and another to Christchurch and Winchester, and early in the following year the regiment moved to

the spring of this year the so-called “ Ro-

Brighton, with a squadron at Canterbury. On the 4th of July, 1834, the Adjutant, Mr. Kelly, having gone out riding on the Downs, was discovered lying on the ground insensible, in which state he died, and was buried in Preston churchyard. On the lst of January, 1885, having received

a sudden order for Ireland, in consequence of a general election expected there, and being

man” helmet was replaced by one of brass, for the oi‘ﬁcers’ gilt, with a movable bear-skin crest. Several minor changes of dress also

took place, and the blue uniform of the Band, which, as the Royal Regiment of Dragoons, they had worn for many years, was discontinued by order of King William IV.

Major—General the Honourable Sir Frederic Ponsonby dying on the 10th of January, 1887, he was succeeded in the colonelcy of the Royals by Lieutenant-General the Right Hon—

curable Sir Richard Hussey Vivian, Bart, K C. B., G.C,H., from the 12th Royal Lancers, on the 20th of the month, The accession to the throne of Her Majesty

Queen Victoria on the 20th of June this year, occasioned much employment for the troops in lreland, and particularly for the Royals, during the months of July and August, but

on the 20th of September the regiment ﬁnally quitted Dublin for Cork and Ballincollig. Major-General Sir Amos Norcott, K.C.H.,

C.B,, commanding the Cork District, died, and was buried with military honours, at which the regiment assisted on the 8th of January, 1838, Major Banner, of the 92nd Gordon Highlanders, being similarly interred on the same day. A Horse Guards order of the 2nd of May, 1838, communicated to the regiment Her Majesty’s gracious permission for the Royal Dragoons to assume on their guidons and ap-

pointments the “Eagle,” in commemoration of their having captured that of the 105th

regiment of the French Line at the battle of Waterloo. On the 5th of the month came a sudden order for the embarkation of the regiment for Liverpool, where, on arrival,

the head-

quarters and one troop proceeded to Sheﬁield, the remaining ﬁve troops being dispersed throughout to northern district, command. ed by Major-General Sir Charles Napier, and at this time much disturbed by meetings of the Chartists, headed by Feargus O‘Connor. For some weeks a small force under Lieutenant-Colonel Martin, K-H., consisting of a troop of the Royal Horse Artillery, one troop of the Royal Dragoons, and some companies of the 20th Regiment of infantry, was stationed at Ashton-under-Lyne, which neighbourhood

was greatly disaffected.

The regiment, con-

centrating at Sheffield, was much harassed during the winter, so much bad feeling prevailing in the town; Where, among other modes of annoyance, the people threw down in the streets what are called “ crows’—foot,”

EAGLE to injure the horses.

151 While here the horse

artillery and cavalry re-commenced wearing

the moustaches.

‘

At a meeting held on the 5th of February, 1840, the services of the regiment were pub— licly acknowledged in a vote of thanks by the magistrates and the commissioners for the improvement of the town of Shefﬁeld, who upon the same occasion presented Lieuten— ant-Colonel Martin with a handsome piece of plate. By order from the Horse Guards of the

29th of February, 1840, the pistols were abolished in the heavy cavalry, excepting for troop-sergeant-majors and trumpeters, those in the light cavalry, with the exception of the Lancers, having been equally suppressed in the year preceding. On the 7th of May the regiment commencedits march for Glasgow and Hamilton, and

on the 9th of June it was inspected by MajorGeneral Lord Greenock, KC B, commanding in North Britain, who expressed himself highly satisﬁed with its appearance. On the 19th of September, it was inspected by Major-General Sleigh, C.B., InspectingGeoeral of Cavalry, who expressed himself equally pleased.

One squadron marched on the 5th of April, 1841, for Newcastle-on-Tyne; on the 26th of May for Leeds, detaching one troop to Bradford. On the 13th of September, Major-General Sleigh, C.B., inspected the regiment, with which he was well pleased. The troops from Carlisle and Newcastle-onTyne arrived on the 12th of April, 1842, at Manchester, and the head-quarters and the troop from Bradford on the 12th of May, in

which month a troop was detached to Congleton, rejoining head quarters in August, when another troop went to Burslem in aid of the civil power, but returned in a few days. On the 9th of August serious disturbances broke out in the town and neighbourhood 01, Manchester, ageneral turnout of the oper-

152

THE

EAGLE '1‘ H E

atives taking place,

which continued for

some weeks, during which the military were constantly and actively employed. On the 18th of the month, Lieutenant—Colonel Martin was detached to Ashton-under-Lyne, in com. mand ofa troop of horse artillery, a squadron of Royals, and some detachments of infantry, to the assistance of the magistrates, where he

remained

several

weeks.

General Lord

SOUTH AFRICAN LETTERS. LlCHTENSTEIN, 0. R. C., Slst October, 1901. DEAR M, A few days after the affair at Traka Farm mentioned in my lastletter, we caught ﬁfteen Boers crossing the Caledon river, one of

Vivian, dying on the 20th of August, was suc-

whom made a bold dash for the opposite bank

ceeded in the colonelcy of the Royal Regiment

and liberty, but he changed his mind, after receivinga bullet through his ear, and sur. rendered with the rest. We were engaged during the ﬁrst part of

of Dragoons by General Sir Arthur B. Clifton, GO. 3, K.C.H., from the 17th Lancers. With reference to the conduct of the military throughout these troubles in the north-west— ern district, the following extracts and cor-

respondence refer particularly to the Royal

Dragoons :— “General Order, “Horse Guards, 8th Oct., 1842. “The Commanderdn-Chief has great satisfaction in publishing the expression, con-

veyed to him by the Secretary of State of Her Majesty‘s most gracious approbation of the services performed as well by the Yeomanry as Her Majesty’s troops.”

“Whitehall, 23rd Sept, 1842. “ My Lord Duke, " l have the honour to inform your Grace that I have received the Queen’s Commands

to express Her Majesty’s high approval of the good conduct, exemplary forbearance, and steadiness of the military employed in support of the civil authorities, during the disturbances which have unhappily prevailed in many northern and midland counties, and to communicate to Lieutenant—General Sir Thomas Arbuthnot, Commanding-in-Chief in

the month in searching a piece of country some thirty miles long by ﬁfteen broad ; a good deal of clothing and household utensils were found hidden amongst the rocks, but nothing important in the shape of arms and ammunition. We had to destroy three thou-

sand sheep, which seems a great pity, but under the circumstances justiﬁable, as we could not take them with us, and to have left them for the enemy would have been to

defeat our own object. On the 15th we blocked the crossings over the Caledon river from Bastard’s Drift to Mokari; a party of a hundred Boers approached the river, but their advance-guard gave the alarm and the enemy retired. Their two scouts did their duty gallantly,

and paid the piper, both being shot as they galloped away, one killed, and the other wounded

these counties, to Major-General Sir William

and taken prisoner. Later, the same day, we took three more prisoners and another Boer was shot. Next day, whilst on convoy duty, we saw a party of the enemy trekking west, and on arriving in camp heard that Commandant Kritzinger had crossed the river. This

Warre, Major-General Brotherton, and Colo-

news resulted in a night march to De Hoop.

nel Thorn, to the oﬂicers, non-commissioned

Day dawned, but no Boers were visible, and

ofﬁcers, and privates, the expression of Her

our scouts came in and reported nothing seen, so back home we went. After a bit of cold

Majesty’s approval. “ l have, etc.,

mutton, a biscuit, and asleep, we were off

“(Signed) R. T. GRAHAM."

again with a convey to Pampasfontein—a.

two days’ trek. Shortly after our arrival there, three mounted infantrymen galloped in with the news that fifty M. I. were cut off near Bosch mans Kop A force went out and returned next day, but were too late, the patrol of M. I. being cap» tured by Brand’s commando. Our force found and brought in one wounded man The Boers afterwards released their prisoners, and ordered them to make their way back to He nearest town. It appears, the M. I. off-saddled on a low hill and went to sleep. The three men who escaped, were on outpost, but in an opposite direction, and therefore did not see the Boers until they were on the hill. From what i could gather, they did not appear to have any other post out, and the whole of them went to sleep and woke up to ﬁnd their horses in the hands of the enemy and each man confronted with a be-whiskered

burgher behind a levelled riﬂe.

It is quite

certain they will never catch the Royals so soft as that. On our ﬁrst day’s march back with the convoy ‘we'

bivouacked at

Yzervorkfontein,

and were met there by “ B " Squadron. During the night information was brought in that four comniandoes were converging on our position. The outposts were doubled, but nothing happened, except that a sergeant of “ B” Squadron, disturbed by the outpost business, awoke at midnight and imagined it was ’reveille, and walked dowu the lines shout-

ing “bridle up for water i ” On the 23rd a large number of mounted men were reported to be moving towards us on the hills to the north-west—so out we went

in pouring rain with the guns clattering and bumping behind us. On getting into touch we found they were a column from Wepenerl It was stormy all day, and we got back a bit damp. After a. few hours’ rest and some

attempt at drying ourselves, we turned out foranight march, and arrived at Bastard’s drift (a ford on the Caledon river) at 4 A M.

"EAGLE

153

We had a nice, quiet day. nothing seen or heard, so we lay up in the rocks, boiling our billys of coffee or tea, frizzling bits of mutton on carefully—hidden ﬁres, and smoking the

pipe of peace till nightfall,

We were just

preparing our bivouac, When a native scout brought in a message that Colonel Lane’s force had been attacked at Pampasfontein, and we were to try to cut off the Boers at Jackalsfontein,—which meant an all-night march. Thus vanished allchance ofa sleep. Blankets were re-rolled and horses sa ddled, and off we moved in a long ghostly column, silent, but for the click and rumble of the lorses‘

feet.

p' '

We arrived at our destination at daybreak, but the enemy

came not, and we returned

to camp where we heard the

Boers had at—

tacked Pam pasfontein and were driven back withaloss of forty, the Mounted Infantry having ten casualties.

“ B ” Squadron, and

the pompom were sent out in support. The enemy under Brand retired west, which accounts for his non-appearance at Jackalsfontein. Convoy duty again on the 27th instant. Leaving camp at5 P. M. (“ A" and “ B ” with two guns), we bivouacked at Yzervorkfontein (popularly known as “:Knife and Fork” fontein) after a march ,on a lovely moonlight night. The outposts were fired on at daybreak, and “B” Squadron went on with the convoy, whilstwe kept an eye on the Boers. We met “B ” again on the 29th, and also a column trekking north, amongst whom was an officer, formerly in the Royals, and now serving with Driscoll’s Scouts. The end of this month has been marked by heavy storms and a flooded camp. However, in spite of the discomforts of trying to eat and sleep ina Vigorous young waterspout, the troops are all hard as nails and as happy as the proverbial sand boy. Yours. etc, Of .-OL.

THE EAGLE

REMINISCENCES OF BIG GAME SHOOTING.

India.

THE It is in this latter type of country

where i have been lucky enough to, shoot bison, so I propose to describe a successful day in the hill ranges of ’l‘ravancore. Starting half-an-hour before daybreak, the slu‘lcari, tw0 trackers and myself, made for some ground where we had seen bison feeding the evening before. The morning broke

herd consisted of seven cows and four calves, without a bull amongst them, so all our trou ble was for nothing. However, exchanging my riﬂe for a camera, I took a photograph, under very sad conditions, for the light was dull and the rain falling steadily. It is, however, only on rare occasions that one is in a position to obtain a photograph, and the opportunity mu st

game hunter,ﬁrstly, the most patient endur-

damp and cheerless, witha ﬁne drizzling rain

not be let slip, be other conditions what they

ance, for he may have to walk miles over bad country through the densest jungles from dawn till darkness, and never even obtain the most ﬂeeting glimpse of his game; secondly, a very thorough knowledge of the animal’s

falling from a leaden sky, conditions likely to keep bison out in the open feeding until well on into the day. On bright sunny days they retire into the thick cover much sooner to avoid the heat, so that on this occasion we should have plenty of time for a careful stalk before our game was likely to withdraw for

I.—Bison,

There are few more enjoyable sports in India than the pursuit of that huge representative of the bovine race, known as 808 Gaurus, the Indian Bison. It demands from the big

habits, and of the principles of stalking and tracking ; and thirdly, accurate shooting, often under

very

disturbing conditions;

for

al.

though a bison is a gigantic beast, unless he is hit in the proper place, there is a very good chance of his going off and never being recovered, afurther testimony to the cruelty of bad shooting. On the type of Country, in which the bison is to be hunted, will depend to a great extent the amount of pleasure to be derived from the sport. He may have to be tracked through thick jungle in which it is almost impossible to stand upright for more than a few paces, and through dense

thorn brakes against which no clothing ever devised by man is proof; and at the end of a few hours of such work one is often lucky to obtain even a momentary glimpse of him

as he dashes away, warned by a treacherous puff of wind or the crack o/a twig of the pres‘

ence of danger. At such a time the sportsman will only7 be able to ﬁre the most hasty and unsatisfactory of shots; unless he man-

ages to keep the wind right and avoid making the slightest noise, when he may get close up and put in a vital shot. This type of shooting and tracking through dense jungle, as is of necessity practised in.Burmah, has many disadvantages, and is not to be compared with bison stalking in open down-like country with

the

midday siesta.

Just

as day broke, we

came round the shoulder of a hill right on to a herd of bison within 200 yards. Fortunately the wind was right and they remained unsuspicious; so we determined to make a closer

inspection for the purpose of seeing whether there was a good bull with the herd, and also to take a photograph. To attain either of

these ends, requires a very close approach to within thirty or forty yards, if possible, and consequently every precaution with re_ gard to wind and noise. We had gained the top ofa hill overlooking the herd, and were delighted to see, on peering over into the valley below, that the herd were still there and about 150 yards distant A steady wind blew in our direction and they were looking straight away from us—so far nothing could be better; but there was nothing between ourselves and the herd to afford the very slightest concealment, and consequently we were compelled to crawl down a steep slope, ﬂat on our stomachs in full view of the bison

if they chanced to look behind them.

A sus-

thick patches of forest here and there which

picious cow frequently turned to gaze in our direction, but by lying motionless when she looked, and crawling forward when she turned again to feed, we managed to gain some rocks within forty yards of the tail of the herd.

one meets with in the hill ranges of Southern

Arrived here, we soon discovered that the

may. Leaving this herd in peaceful ignorance of now near they had been to danger, we again climbed the hill from whose summit we had just descended.

From here a careful search with the glasses revealed the presence of a fine solitary bison feeding in the open nearly a mile away, and soon after yet another bull appeared from behind a knoll and joined the one we had first seen. A glance over the intervening ground at once showed that a difficult stalk was in The wind was right from the p05]. prospect we then were, but what changes Which tion in it was likely to undergo by reason of the many small dips in the ground, and the con.

EAGLE

warning of our p‘rOximity. So far so good; and we soon reached the point mentioned a

few hundred yards up the nullah.

Here a

short halt was necessary to consider from what direction the wind was likely to be coming when we emerged from the valley. As it was getting late in the day, and the bison were not likely to remain out much longer, we had to take some risk, and carefully crawling up the side of the nullah immediately tested the breeze by throwing up grass. A fold in the ground concraled us, but the wind was shifting round and we weie very doubtful of success even now, though within 200 yards of the bulls. Worming our way along as quickly as our lying position would permit, the ground up to the ridge which crncealed us was covered in good time. Then with great anxiety and caution, and raising our heads slowly above the crest-line, to our intense delight, we saw the two bulls some dismnce

apart, and the nearer of the two only forty yards away. Both were, however, very suspicious, and with beads raised, stood intently

snifﬁng the air.

There was obviously no time

valley which ran in the direction of the bison, but past them and a long distance below where

to be lost, and a shot through the breast at the nearer bull who was directly facing us, dropped him in his tracks, whilst the left barrel of the “ 450 "dropped the second hull with a raking shot rather far back, for he was standing three-quarters away and eighty yards

Arriving here we were

off ; a very awkward shot and one not to be

pleased to ﬁnd the wind blowmg steadily in

taken unless under exceptional circumstances, such as the present, when both ani-

the formation of the hills between us and

object of our pursuit, it was impossible to say. by There was nothing else to do but to start

descending down a very steep slope into a

they were feeding.

our favour along the depression, and as we were out of sight of the bison, made excellent progress for about quarter of a mile, at which point a nullah entered at right angles to the one we were in. By proceeding up this, we should the bulls, reach a point almost on a level with

there and some 800 yards from them. But as is and, consider, to was still the wind down straight blowing was it case, the usually this branch nullah or nearly at right angles to

our direct line of approach to the bison. There was,therefore, very little risk of any treacher. over to give ous puff of wind being cariied

mals were very suspicious and likely to make for thick cover at any moment. This re-

sult, a right and left, was indeed a satisfactory one, and more than we could have expected

from the diﬁicult nature of the stalk and the very uncertain behaviour of the wind over the last part of the ground. However, the end was not yet. The ﬁrst bull temporarily recovering from the shock. managed to regain his legs and reach the edge of the thick jungle before another bullet could be put into him. No. 2 also, though very badly hit, got into a.

156

THE

.dip in ,the ground and gained some thick jungle just below his original position. We now realised that trouble might be in store, and proceeded cautiously in pursuit- of No. 1. We found him lying down on the very edge of the forestand creeping quietly up through somewhat thick jungle, momentarily expected a charge. Fortunately for us the poor beast was too ,far gone, and a shot through the brain ﬁnished him. Turning our attention to N0. 3, we took up his tracks from where he had enteredthe jungle, and a. fairly copious blood— trail made matters easy for us.

The jungle

was at ﬁrst open, but after about half a mile became very thick, rendering our purSuit rather a nerve-trying experience. He kept well ahead of us and we could hear him from

time to time, but he never lay down, keeping steadily on ahead which led us to believe that he could not be very badly hit after all. After some time spent in this way we lost touch with him, and being on the edge of the forest

again, sent the trackers into trees to see if he had gone out into some long grass about six feet high. which ran along the side 0f the jungledn a strip about hundred yards wide. To our great delight one of the men, saw him

TEE EAGLE

EAGLE taken through the grass at a place where a vital spot was assumed to be, for only the tips

of his horns could be seen

This rolled him

over, and cautiously approaching, we found

him lying down.

A third shot in the neck

ﬁnished him. He was a veritable old solitary bull, covered with scars and wounds from

ﬁghts with others of his kind, and a worthy reward for our efforts in a most exciting and interesting piece of sport.

G. O. HORSE MANAGEMENT IN INDIA. BY Con. H. DE B. DE L'SLE, 0.8., D 8.0. (Continued ; FEEDING. The subject of feeding horses in India is one that cannot be learnt in a few days, because it is only by experience that the most suitable feeding with regard to the work can be estimated, At the same time a novice will ﬁnd he cannot obtain this experience in a reason-

able time without a. guide.

In this chapter

I propose to give certain scales of feeding ,as a guide, but these will have to be changed

enter the patch 0f grass about ﬁfty yards

according to whether the horse is newly land,

away fooking very sick, and turning round now

redin india and requires fattening;

and again to catch a glimpse, if possible, of his pursuers. Keeping well concealed, we let him get some distance into the grass and then emerged from the jungle ourselves. Here we lost allitrace of him for some few minutes. and, as may be imagined, it was scarcely

fat has to be put into muscle, and so on. To summarise, this subject may be sub-divided into the feeding required to get a horse into big condition, that for forming muscle, and

training.

or when

To make my meaning. more clear, I

which it was impossible to see more than a few yards in an endeavour to come on his tracks. On such an occasionone is so liable to walk suddenly on to the wounded beast, and

would liken big condition to the state of a man landing in India after a long voyage; forming muscle to the process necessary before he could go through a 20-mile route march without being distressed; and training to the preparation he would require before he could

a charge under these circumstances might

play in a ﬁrst-class football tournament, run

have easily proved fatal to any one of our

a, mile in ﬁve minutes, or fightat seven-round contest with the gloves on.

pleasant casting. round in thick grass through

party.

However, our luck did not desert us,

for soon after we caught sight of the tops of his horns as he moved slowly along through the high grass and a difﬁcult shot had to be

To get a horse into fat condition, soft food and abundant grass is required, with nothing but walking exercise. This should be com-

bined with good grooming and stable management. If unhealthy, the advice of a veterinary surgeon should be called in, for it is evident that no good can be done until the internal organs are in ahealthy state. Of course, it may be argued that loss of condition must be the result of loss of health, but I refer he re to the

liver and fever, with or Without lung troubles, which so generally result from sea transport under unfavourable conditions. This is evident by the pale or yellow appearance of the gu ms,

on raising the upper lip. A healthy horse should be pink, like new skin, and any yellow If not tinge is a sign of liver or fever. food soft with rest pronounced, a. few days' may bring improvement, especially if assisted by three or four ounces of Epsom salts for three days, followed by a daily dose of nitre, a resin, and sulphur in equal parts, giving feed. night the in tablespoonful As a guide, therefore, I_ recommend the following scale for conditioning :— ....4lb.

*Oats

. 4 ,,

Bran

2 ,, ....20 ,, ...40 ,, ....2oz.

Boiled barley ‘ Lucerne ‘ . Dhoob grass , Salt

on Of course, it may not be possible to feed of out be may rne Luce scale. liberal this procurable, be season, dhoob grass may not and oats owing to the price may be prohibit» but ive. If gram. and barley are available, the answer will not oats, the following scale . purpose :~—

157

belly must swell out until it assumes the appearance of a mare in foal. Then the ribs must get covered. with fat. This fat will ﬁrst be noticeable at the lower portions of the ribs, and after a month, rises as high as the short ribs of the loin. The hand placed ﬂat on the ribs and moved laterally, moving the skin with it, gives the horsemaster the correct appreciation of the amount of flesh on the ribs. Lastly, the fat shows itself on the back, loin, and quarters, which, when properly covered, have a round appearance. As soon as the animal is in big condition, with pink gums, bright eyes, and healthy coat, it is time to put on muscle,

increasing

the work to long walking and trotting, gentle at first and increasing to three or four miles. The feeding must also be gradually increas-

ed in proportion

with the work until the

following scale is reached: — 81b.

Oats Bran Gram ‘ i Boiled barley thoob grass '

. 2 - 2 l ’ ....30

‘

.. . . 5‘ ,,-

Lucerne or carrots

2 02.

Salt

., n ,, ,. "

or the alternative scale without oats—— 31b.'

Parched barley

Gram

- 3 n '

Bran

- (l n l ,,

'T Boiled barley Dry hay Lucerue or carrots

Salt

-»-~20 ’5 .. . 5 ,,

‘

202.:

Parched barley

It will'be here noticed that even when muscle-forming work and feeding are given,

Boiled gram

the quantity of bran is equal to that of the

Bran Boiled barley

aggregate of barley and gram.

Dry hay

o ,, Carrots or lucerne if available .. . 2 oz Salt

the To get animals into big condition, the , First : hed reac be following stages must

Barley is an

excellent food, boiled or parched, but should never be given raw. As soon as the muscles

stand out on the

can neck and shoulders, and the rib muscle ﬁt for is pony the felt, as well as seen be necessary to training, that is, the fast work

for l4‘l ponies. * The scales given are intendedcent, and for 13-2 ‘25 per add es hors hand l5 For ponies deduct 25 per cent.

Twice or three times a week.

158

THE EAGLE

”’9

at theth:::::i::;l flungs s]?‘ 03%) enough. to grand

531] the year round. '

Sergeant Sutch, determined to be in the

re-play, for we were surprised to learn by Wire ' .

en training - 035:;01‘ I uallOtglngr‘z)’; for the racina 011inwa e all”? 1: “0 ‘10:]th uce ie es resu 5. . . . With a good riding boy who does not spml a , _ M gznyrzimoiut polo ponies

baturday nightsi a bran mash with linseed should always precede the day's rest on Sun. days‘

from Bombay of the defeat of our men by two

de endne

fashion has announced his intention of bringino out'his ﬁancee from home, and joining the . 5 ha 11' -married earl in J ‘ ’ the mmlSUOf 8:118 pp y y comm ‘ ‘ Amobni the non-COIDmlSSlODed ofﬁcers and men pi-oZeedinO' to England, are three mem.

and hunteis may

m the

same way,

‘ same

In the

way,

Horses not doing galloping work, such as harness horses, hunters not in training, and

{he result

troop horses not during the drill season,

02d enzsghmeCh {in the ruling boy, who, 1f

should be treated as recommended for ponies

fore that: t[391113.leW014i, WOUId be a tree»

during the muscle-forming process, or dur-

a 13min? schoo] antlt

mg the conditioning process according to the work they are doing, but the quantity of grain must be increased accordinot b o the $128 of' the

‘

more team standing betWeen us and the covet‘ ' on the ed trophy We shall hear all details

return of our men, meanwhile we Wish them

’

ektter to work ponies in

When getti’n: alalllcopino

goals ‘30 ”it- This was the semi-ﬁnal round, and W0u la 1 b a d WCn W0 n ’ have left but one

. . training a wor , an wp010, ien playing or m forb tournament

, , 1 be fed on the followmg p on'ies SbOUld scale.~

bers of L'«e Mess, namely, Sergeants Elliott,

setchell, and Jamieson.

them and assure them of our Sincere good wishes for their success in the old country. ,l‘he MeSs. olters “ 'its c onuratulatio ns to 0010' b ‘ on t h e biith ofa son to him.. to nel de Lisle

horse. . (1002 continued.)

better ”Ck next time

We regret to lose

’— CRICKET‘ . . cnR w s A N..J SERGE A NTS L's (ORPORALS. Orti 0 Ger" (1 d o'er cunts.

Mr. ”mm on his engagement, and to our old

)7?

lST lvxmes.

....10 to 'Zﬁlb

Oats DhOUl) Grass

Lucerne or c'a ”015 Salt

ommandlng

A farewell dance was held in the Mess on . the station 29th ultimo, when many friends in

.’ V '30;

Hailed barley, 21b , and bran, 21b, after p010.' » NI . . l o doubt ponies can be trained on parched

barley and grain, butl must confess I have never succeeded in makino likeﬁt

och, ()ﬁlcer. (J‘OlOllel 81110 Murd

1‘O I ES

IIIESS

responded to our ‘anlbaLlOUs, ' ' ' ~ and spent a happy night dancing on the tennis courts outSIde the Mess. The evening was perfect,

with a brilliant

them anything on any th‘ - ina0‘1) ut oats. 5 In former days,

when oats were unknown in India, horses

moon,

~—’

made. Vely pleasant. Regimental band supplied the music, and The the

to well on in the small i on i n

V a n s o n ,

accident to Major McNeile, and our Wishes ‘ ' arefOl' his speedy necovery. ‘ “ SERGEAN'I‘.”

and .dancmg was

Lucknow,

, . l lbw, b Knight

“ PituilIElL-iiikin .. .‘bEh 3 “1:11:11:ng Mew (:fhiA.E(dwardes lbw, DMCCOWMC 3 “about

50/ M' sergeant heal" cI-Iolf bBray .. 6 0 Knight 3 bEshmeade .. 51mm 0 and b

Scrgt.Angus,’bRankin.l

FOOTBALL"

, Mcoormac Ed w a r dis, ..U

‘

L, K! l lg ht , b J u d ge

5915334811116 Si deDkll]

. 8th of last month. MUIdOChs We wereon allthe extremely sorry to learn Of the

and a cloudless sky

proceedings lasted

’

C bC

2ND INNINGS.

as hoped there would be another Victory

for the Regl’ ment, l ‘ II the football ﬁeld to record 1

. but 01” hopes have “0” been reallsed'

.. 1 0 b Eshmeade .. 1 0 c Jones, b Bray b Knight 3 0 Knight, 1) Eshmeade 10 , Stalker, Kiwanomun . R all k lll

Creswell, rim out

writers . allude frequently to the ,Chemist’s

and there was an element of sadness in the

shop, and I am certain that if grain is increase

In the

naBombay Rovers’ Football Tour

thought that we should spend no more happy

bums .. 1 3

Extras

ment our

men opened the ﬁrst round by heat

comfort— by the Wanderers Poona ina balethe margin of six goals to two. They next

Total .. 60

Total

sal salts toand ammoniac usedEpsom constantly assist thanbe61b" to (“Oremust ed

gardens, Of been in this City and-nights days so many Joyous functions had held.Where S.S.M. Corke returned from English fur-

a et theDKirkee Royal Field Artillery, and

his neWIy-made

:lter a fast dame could only draw with them,

the digestion.

lf my readers want to play

with

him

in first class tour-naiiients, they should feed

lough, bringing

their ponies on oats, for itis an economy to do . . .

bride, and we olfer the new-comer a hearty , . *

the score be?ng one goal all. ,

likeWise bergeants Rlclimond and Martin WelCO‘me- returned. 8.8. M. Cooke comes out with the draft

on the gunners running in men succeeded and 1 In wonderful; improved re-play our the their feet, eventually beating them by three

3ib_ thanbarley to more increased the be lrllpOSSlble, mustIfnot gram and qmte 50' each. but the bran may be diminished:_ Gram

3 m

and goes direct to M nttra, as do also_S,Q,ii: S,

Parched barley Bran

3 .. 4 ,.

Rapkin I and Sergeant Sales. SergeantElmes was married, afewdays ago

15 i, r carr

Salt De near

at the Garrison Church, to

Miss Pearce, a

W ell,

' ' " S " [1

Bmled barley, 211). after polo. I

lady who has

been a

ll I equent

' V.lSllJOI‘

dances andother enteriainmen I ts“

(blll‘

feed, mixed with bran and oats, is an excellent restorative after polo, and should be the rule

too, has succumbed to US on

ma ‘3 Che‘ (1 ' b here1n fl‘1en l 37 ‘

Thehappy

couple have left for England, where Elmes

Two pounds of boiled barley in the night

and

takes up the post of Recruiting Seroeant for r: the Regiment at St George’s Barracks We Wish them the best of luck.

Rankin,

..b

or a c MO Edwards

I l

Lshmedﬁgﬁfi: 0‘}. 10 ,

’1‘ 03 t1

b Stalker lbw , bReimers

’

McLe tan, Angus (7 ~ _. i. Angus ,1011i,s,li

‘

3 c Vanson 0 cand b Vanson 24

m b

lbw,

Doriingﬂ) Reimers lbw, b

C Qiigllls

bStalker

0 ”m, t Remus

King“!

.a . . aaistered. , he Our team must‘hme gone to bits 111 t

2. -)

Edwards .. Judge, b Edwards

. ; Wthh

all beinor re‘ matters equal: a draw Of on e Oaoal D

2ND INNXNGS. 1

b Edwards c Angus... Mgrlow.

CELSIOIl 1 ft, 00

hard game

.. 96

r vamon

H E b R , e, , eim s ..

01111 men K116 W a team which '

0 18

Corporate. lsr lnNiNGs.

.. ..

Bray,b Reimers..

0111 ~ .one. were, curiouslyengugw, nextopponents Our130 bGoals no no , the Kings Own Lancasters from

bEshmeade

.. ”I .9

iioteliililt b

c B .l . run out

‘tal 'er

b Vans“.

.. .-

Extras ., Total

4 64

THE REGIMENTAL GAZETTE. Proviwu‘ons and Appointments.

5657, Pte. Herbert to be Unpaid Lance-Corporal. Service.

4239, Sergt.-Tptr. Nash re-engaged to complet e 21 years with the colours. 5456. Corpl Perks extended to complete 12 .years with the

5464. Lce.-Corpl. Blundell

“

39. rte. Cook 5370 “ Coghlan 5587 “ Corke 5810 " Evans 5753 " Purvis

~‘ “ " H “

“019“"

h “ u .. H

' .

.. " .. .. ~-

Good-Conduct Badges.

5839, Pte. Coghlan granted 2nd Good»Conduct Badge. 5587 .. Corke .. .1 l.

5737, Corp]. Hoff 5844 " Bullion 587. Pte. Hartland

EAGLE 5259 Pte. 5274 K“ 5271 ‘: 5222

Marvel Smith Crowhurst Clark

5424 5428 5466 5495

52in 5281 5270

Wolfe Getliﬂ’e Stores

5500 " 5544 Pto 5837 "

Strihling Holland Meakes

4149 ’l‘ptr Goodbody 5500 “ Richardson 5352 Pte. Oliver

‘ ‘ ,

5291) j 5116 5207 ‘ 520%

Francis

5761

“

Dinning

5764 “

Hazel]

5748

“

5280

5366

“

5812 5814

" ”

M cGregor Humphreys

5383

“

Dve

5306 5802 5303

Brant FitzGerald Bently

5395 " (Tole 5816 " ' Coouiher 5454, “ Hobbs.

5761

Wilkinson

5474

5310

Llyull

5503 ‘”

Holmes.

5517 331 .72 .710 5573

” " “ ” "

Collier. Plumb. lirown. Newport. Bishop

53119 "

Hingerty

‘

Merrick

“

lst "

“ “

" "

“ “

5317

MUTTRA. lNDIA.

NOVEMBER. 1009.

Subscriplimzs to "The Eagle" are (IS follows :—

Lilley

‘~

‘

‘-

5320

716

Beecroft

Robson

5809 "

“

5805 5328 5324 5752 5343

Wak’eneil.

‘

Cook Bell Watson Wright Helcher

5772 5811 5377 5815 5396

Butler

McIntosh Knight. Ives. Combes. Duckworth

5400 ”

Certiﬁcates.

Furlough and Leare—Oﬁ'icer-s,

Major E. FitzG. M. Wood. D.S.0.. granted general leave out of India on private aﬁairs from 12th October, 1909. to date of taking up appointment on the General Staff, London Territorials. Non— Commissioned Ofﬁcers and Men.

4192-. TritraGoodhody granted 6 months’ furlough to Eng-

an . Moves. 5494, 8.8. Sutton to proceed to Ambala to join the Veterinary Class assembling there. 5830. S S Scott " " ' The following have been alloted a passage on H. T. " Rohilla.” sailing on 14th October, 1909:—

‘

530-7 ‘ 5703 ‘ 5354, 5363 5744 “ 5773 ' 5380 " 5415 5386 5813 '

Black Wehsier Stevenson McAllister Carroll Treble Briars Hrightwell Butcher The following have been

5774 545?. 5481 5506 5523 5881 2236 .0, 5553

Alder.

Col. Richardson "' Hughes L -Cpl. IVilshnr “ Moore “ Hi‘liiWGil Pte. Aslnwnth LQlll‘l. "

Sizbscribérs (1’ home. pfj‘ {112:1}qu .. .. Slzlmcriim ‘ ‘ India , J, Home AWVO‘IL'COHIIIllasiI}716dOfﬁl‘é‘l‘s anilmeu

(present mnnbei‘s or (3:71101/1120. ‘1” India .. -. pn‘ (lmzum.

allotted

5798 Pte.

Warner

5208

”

Setchell

5770

“

Reilly

5322

Jamieson

799

‘

Cook

5007 " Elmes 3525 ‘* Elliot 5412, Corpl. Murkett 5210 " Mace. 5206, Lea-Cpl. Day 5212 “ Eshmeade

5808 5214 .221 5234 5800 5222

Corner Keine scaife Shurmer German Halford

5M6

Cuthbertson 5226

5288

Handler

5801

Baxter

Ennis Galiatly Payne Cast

5220 5230

Isaacs Newton Flippance Chandler

Smith

Rivett '

. Allen Williams

O’Donnell Brooks Jackson

Nichols Perkins Mason

Blakeman .

Silk McDougall

135.3»5-0 .144,

‘ ~

public/lam in 1d 'lchrthilrl/lilze 417 ramminzimlimis inmzilad for }}((])(l‘.011.lI/.rl(l( 121.11, mm)?“ [/16 (102211; 2). zi-ri‘mn on our xiu‘e of 1 (LT-z 01/ {he li'l'llél _s u zine ( anied accomp ZN; should (12;le ”Eldilloi'xzble (wilting; “176,5 71,” in 2% TILF/Iiim' Will 2101 untlw‘iilkr In. went 1/ unless spa-M u. 7110)" i0 I't/ill'lt any z'oziii'ibriizon. .IN' do so, 7101 ill/31’ Hui/i i/h fir/i of Edi/(Ir UH: I'Ii/H‘II QhOlll/Z i: uiim Conirih s zsxlu “It‘ll mom/l. to u 25-1er [iiiiiliuuliun i/L I/ir/f mun/ii

H. T

5604, Pte Wesley 5606 “ Gibson 5758 " Lislie “ Hill . . “ Spicel‘ . L “ Leadhetter

310, Pte. Holmes transferred to 15th Elussars. ,, n t .. Holmes .. 5523 4193, Bandsmai:l'l‘owndrow discharged after 12 years with the colo is. 5230, Pte. Allen transferred to Army Reserve. LL. ,, ee ,, ., Royal West Kent Regiment Frederick liahn attested and taken on the strength of the Regiment.

~. V. (/1’."‘.IE’II,‘ - .A -, Ia, commu”Sr mil il'rsnif. Ul‘i/I"11_“,1””r"’ 4, .

answer your last.

MONTHLY NOTES. Although the heading of our present numv the her will show the date of publication as . end of November that the paper will be ready the RegiThis, of course, is due to the move of

I'I‘I‘N N'Ilz'i'll In may/"laid: . . They .will.> W ful- us 1105' ii». I]: in,” ]]_y(;.~‘.\'i{ll_’/,i/ /t[jzl/ i » ’ ’lilllt’liiill rival-is. [iii/Illiiiul‘zl‘ " .l/rS/l‘i/‘n‘ I"! LOW/13110111124115. __

bi/Ieller Milli/z suit,

on I'll/JZiL'IIii'OIi in . . _ for . lili‘u'i‘isi'lilulis mm in ilscu'iuinui I’M/s 172: Elli/or.

’

lilC receipt of lhe iollow“'1‘ ber to acknowledge with thanks -.... ‘ ' . . - moniimruri ‘ K. RH

11141.0“ Ccowc‘s

17mm." “ The \\ hue Iillllt'L'l.

In:

"I. > ") M” Army \ l‘imcs, J . I . Chronicle." "The Allissoorio . " “ H. l (,V' ’0 itc HL‘EJll‘lILllth../._IEL. Corps~ Journal." " The a i:.\’ ' LC Q nice , - ., T E Eur/ii hm'ebeuu received.p i. ii. TheiollowmgSiibsumtionsto /l

R. A. '1‘. .-\.. Sept.

PRINTED FOR THE EDITOR BY W. S. MEEK AT THE METHODIST PUBLISHING 'HOUSE, LU'CKNO\V’.

' due in January. L C.~—We wish you the best of luck and happiness. W. G C 4 No reply yet. received to our last . OLD ROYaL. 7 See article on Muttra. GEORGE W.-— Send us any news from Hounslow. Wish you a pleasant holiday to L A. B.»Please write again. Simply too busy

Ilii‘lllm’” “7’ #1111177'686727. H ' K ’,,-],u;h {N 1/1» primary vii/rd 0.7/71: IWW' btiii'céll 121m im run/m.» m Mill/Nil (0/:in Um! 11‘ ulTim lz’vliz‘m'fzzriiier 1m m (mu/w 1,], rim-1,11 m [lupin/«ICC: N:

the Regiment Wife of Serge-«ntElmes taken on the strength of the Regt. “ Pte. Sninmerﬁeld ,, .. ,, ,, ,, ,, ,.

The wife of Sergeant Bush, of a son 30-5-09. The wife of Corp]. Wllsher, of a son.1’7-9 09, The wife of Sergeant Granthier, of a son. 28-7-09.

Many thanks for interesting article.

be MANY SCBSCRIBERS. — Subscriptions for 1910 will

before the 15th as us ual. it will, we fear, be not

. A. S. Gladstone. Esq.

The Wife of 5.8. M. Lawrence, of a son. 24-9—09.

Muttra Cantonments, U. P.”

“ SHAMUS,”

’ikiiibtéiiri‘hl‘iiimi' Hill/Iiinn (if/1wN MW ”’ 7‘" ”fawn“ ‘3’ szlleliv;

Married Establishment.

Births.

W. W.--Thanks for letter. Don’t address private letters to " The Editor,” please ! SEVERAL INQUIRERS.—We are still in the United Provinces, and to avo‘d postal delay, allletters should be addressed “ The Royal Dragoons,

“MK” II INN Men [lo/icy] 1101‘! 1701'!” Iii/l! mile "7 “.m’" ' ('(tlil’lb- 7 WM. MW” illirl ,‘r 111/ 1 un/ [PIN/ills.- (111:7 :s'ilC/l COIN/rm]: asrw/{U'IIU 1"” «' mums , fill/ZIRILZHU (1/le imlzliluiuin/I i/mllui.

Wife of S S M. I F & G. Corke taken on the strength of

Leigh

Rising

1m," ml.

Iropl LIZ slod. and am be him l Iimi/Hl numb/r of brick copiés mm on (ipvlicaliozz to the Editor,

Strength. 3330, Sergt. Clapcott

‘1;er address.

us, 17d.

. {.91 . 6-5-0 .,

I ,, .. ‘ _ . )H' ’0 12/ In officer's . .. 0—14]. 01/156) 3 and men .. gig: [per Lcaiw f0 71mz-cmnnnsnmml 2501.in 11;; rt; to sent) he should Sl'tbxfl‘ipfiflilfl or.» due in (1/1!)an {1111] .16 llffé' 71'le I’lk (labial. r ns. All it'lllliill i flofi‘lier/(IZl Iii-(moo . v ' '4 [7 . 0.. ‘ l “cam.‘ l («fl/i zzbhsim flu: p/iperp s flj number ,1‘ llél‘t e (/1an 5' heel-ion ”It Man/zin (ulili'mms. proceeding on.“ ‘calfm/e J/ 0] 12m ”It unit/y Mani/l t r'zzi’liliinii or [eating Uli- Regimen .

“ Wilson. “ Arnold " Hawkins. “ Watson. " Yeates. “ “ L ‘Cpl. Brown. “ Stone

“ Dougola,” sailing on the 27th October,p-issages 1909‘:—— 5628, 5421 ’, 5-53 5436 .5445 5500

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS.

EDITORIAL NOTICES.

Smith.

906

“ “ “ “ “

No.11.

ilson

Hamilton

“ “

5084, Lee-Corp]. Reading . ' 5464 .. .. Shackell } Supply Course.

VOL. III.

Underliill

Stock Touiklns

Grifﬁths Clarke Sample Langley Viney

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 15TH. 1909.

Foale

5294 5299

“

A MONTHLY CHRONICLE OF THE ROYAL DRAGOONS. “ SPECTEMUR AGENDO.”

Talbot Porter Hall

5750

5325 5.71 5803 5804 531:)

(She ,. gle.

Pte. Me ‘ " Iirszryid1th “ Reiley L.-Cpl. Whittinghan:

Post f‘n ¢

160

Ceil‘ec Shop vm Mnnoru Dciuclun

on application, of Volume II. 190“, can be had . 13011510010; copy. per -8d) (£0-6s 5 Rs. Price. I.

presment from Lucknow to Muttra. For the ow, Luckn in ed print being is Eagle ent The r and and much delay in submitting matte entailres-submitting corrected proofs will be ObVlat be will , hoped is it er, howev This ed. . ‘hortl ‘. ulti18th the on now Luck left edTbhe Reiiiiieut new mo for their three weeks‘ march to our of nder remai the station, where it is probable

our stay in India will be spent

The march

We was very pleasant, generally speanmg. or three in and M. started off daily about 7-30 A. ing Pitch halt. next our reach four hours would

camp, and cleaning up would occupy -us_ until d be about 1 P 51.. and the afternoons rwoul

THE EAGLE

devoted to shooting for those who were pro-‘ vided with guns. Great things, had been hoped forfrom thejheets, or small lakes. which dot the country through which we passed but as it turned out, duck and teal were very scarce, and no good bags were obtained. Wild pigeon there was in abundance, and at Firozabad a party of ofﬁcers bagged over eighty. Buck was seen all along the route, and in the

THE EAGLE

The march was, otherwise uneventful and fairly enjoyable. Everything went perfectl smoothly, although one ought to mention tn: beer contractor, who having on one occas ion actually run short of beer, came within an ace of receiving an unwilling bath in the horse trouoh b. .

HIS

' . leputatlon

asa“b1‘u" 1591'HSaR7‘

ed hlm.

es provided excellent sport in the deep null 7:3

The scenery on theline of march was not particularly striking. There is. of course no question as to the imperishable beauties of Agra in general, and the Taj Mahal in par~

near the river, and no less excellent

‘pots ’

ticular, but for the rest, the landscape was

The most exciting episode of the march was, however, a stampede, which occurred at

much the same as the rest of the Indian plains: long, straight, dusty roads fringed with avenues of trees and running tlll‘OSO‘ll endless fields patterned with irrigation channnels, and, attliis time of the year, under heavy cultivation.

neighbourhood of Shikohabad there was little difficulty in obtaining a good head. At Rankatta, near Agra, hares and partridU-

afterwards in camp.

Chibramau. The Regiment had arrived in camp about 11 A.M., and by midday the horses were

all shackled down andstanding quietly in their lines, apparently quite contented to rest after their iii-mile march. Suddenlythe rear troop of “ B ” Squadron started kicking and squealing, and soon the excitement communicated itself to the whole of the horses in the lines Shackles were broken or heel pegs pulled up and the rear squadron appeared to dash clean through the remainder. Every one, of course turned out instantly and endeavoured to quieten the terriﬁed animals, and generally

they were successful, but 19 horses got clean away, and although several were brought back a number, spurred on by the dangling heel

pegs, galloped right on to the next camp where they were found lying exhausted by the water troughs.

The cause of the stampede is unknown

Several theories were advanced, among them being “ dustedevils,“ hyenas, and, by the natives, spirits of the departed whose bones

inasmuch as we commenced our march With mulercart transport, changed at Cawnpore to bullock-carts, and at Sarai Miran to camels, we had looked forward to some transpo.tdiﬁiculties, out, on the whole, we ex:

perienced little or no trouble.

For compact

loads, such as tents and men’s kits the camels, indeed, proved the most satisfadtory. The Regiment marched into Muttra on the 11th, the barracks being already inhabited by the advance party, and a draft of seventy men from home. This advance party, under Captain Hodgson,

had remained behind

Lucknow, to hand over to the 8th Hussars and travelled to Mnttra by rail. ’ The work of handing over barracks in India is not the fairly easy thing it is at home. A regiment fresh from home is quite bewildered by the unfamiliar sights and customs, and toa person whose several years’ service in the country has accustomed him to

are buried near the camp. Curiously enouvh

these things, and almost made him forget the life in England, a newly-arrived

regiment

iippetars very unsophisticated~to

say the

unit that h as camped there has had a. stain pede. -

Things, of’this descriptiOn are usually very valuable by reason of their association with old members of the regiment, and no amount of insurance can be adequate, as they cannot be replaced. .

One thing upon which we must congratulate cur Irish friends, was the safe arrival of

the Commanding Ofﬁcer’s dogcart.

eas .

This

was fastened up in a huge packing case,. and labelled very conspicuously “ Not wanted on Voyage " ! In welcoming the 8th Hussars to India, we cannot do better than to wish them as good a time out here as we ourselves have spent. Readers will recall that in our last issue we committed ourselves to a most unpicturesque

description of Muttra as a military station. We were, of course, merely elaborating upon hearsay only.

Actual acquaintance with the

jungle station. however, convinces us that there are possibilites in Muttra undreamed of.

For instance, in our ignorance, we were

unaware that in addition to the narrow-gauge railway which brought our heavy baggage from Lucknow, there is,

so the natives assert,

nearly every mounted,

We are sorry to learn that the 8th suffered several bad breakages, in transit, of pictures, china, etc., due doubtless, to [bad packing.

within a couple of

miles of barracks, a big junction on the main a Mr. line to Bombay. The stationmaster is Sutton, who, in recognition of his many acts of courtesy, was the recipient of a handsome 15th riﬂe from the departing ofﬁcers of the Hussars.

Then, again, we are within an hour's run by apart train of the famous city of Agra, which, interests, ral architectu and historical its from This proxipossesses a fairly large garrison. much provide should troops mity of British

mutual entertainment, and we are beginning we to see that we are not nearly as badly off as the not is there case, anticipated. in any slightest doubt about the shooting facilities of

Muttra. Buck, pig, and various wild birds abound, and already our ordinary fare has

been richly supplemented.

, ,

That Muttra itself does not lack historical. interest will be gathered fromaperusal of the very excellent article by “ Shaanus " which is contained in this number. With regard to the question of being upon good terms With the vast native population, to which our correspondent refers, we anticipate no difficulty. During our six years’ residence in India, we have been singularly free from—let us call them misunderstandings with natives, and there is no reason to suppose that we shall not continue sufﬁciently broad-minded to avoid them in the future.

is As we write, social and sporting interest Cup centred in Lucknow, where the Army Week is in progress. All the officers who can be spared have ins gone into Lucknow Major McNeile, Capta and Miles s. Messr Grant and Tomkinson and races, COsens all have horses entered for the s. In and Mr. Charrington has several mount for the addition there is the polo tournament

cup presented by the Regiment.

There are

nt which .is ’ seven entries for this tourname per team. rs playe limited to two ﬁrst class n and inso Tomk in Capta s rise Our team comp . Messrs. Miles, Turner and FitzGerald with Just before going to press, we learn the Army for race the that on facti satis much

rd, Cup was won by Captain Gibbs’ Ponia ridden‘ by

Mr.

Charrington, and

Captain

himTomkinson’s The Munshi, ridden by offer our self, was a very close second. We on their s rider two these to congratulations iful one beaut a was race The e. rmanc perfo home in and our representatives rode cleverly details Full rs. runne n front of a ﬁeld of ﬁftee in our given be will Week now of the Luck next number.

164!

THE

EAGLE

THE

The following is a copy of a circular letter,

you our high sense of the important services

recently received :— Kingston House, Dorchester, 16th October, 1909. DEAR SIR, 7

Royal Dragoons’ Old Comrades’ Dinner. It is intended to hold this at the Holborn Restaurant, on Saturday, 27th November, at

7 RM. punctually. Last year no less than 228 were present, as

against 172 the year before. The cost of the Dinner to the non-commissioned ofﬁcers and men will be as before, 2/6 for the 4/- Dinner, the balance being paid by the Fund; but no payment will be made by the Fund towards the cost of liquid refreshments. If you have not already subscribed, but feel inclined to do so, the smallest subscription will be gratefully received by Messrs. Cox and 00., of Charing Cross, for the account of the

Old Comrades’Fund.

There are, of course, a

certain number of necessary expenses besides the actual cost of the food which have to be

It is with the deepest regret that we have to announce the death from blood— poisoning of 2nd~Lieutenant E]. A. R. Rube, who passed away at the Station Hospital, Lucknow, early on the morning

of October 20th last.

This sad event

coming upon us with such suddenness has cast a gloom over the whole regiment, and there is not one amongst us who does not feel the deepest grief at this premature ending to a promising career. Joining the Regimentin i907, the late Oﬁicer served two years on probation and was gazetted 2nd~Lieutenanton May 15th this year. By his keenness in work and sport alike, he showed that he had the making of a good ofﬁcer, and his early death has taken from us one who will be much missed throughout the Regiment. We take this opportunity of offering our sincerest sympathy to the

parents and relations of the deceased

defrayed by the Fund, such as printing, post ages,advertisements, pianist, cigars. and tobacco, and it is for the above that the sub-

scriptions are invited.

The same committee as lastyear have agreed to act, and R, S.M. Finn is circulating amongst all the men whose addresses he has a notice

HISTORICAL RECORD Of the First or the Royal Regiment of Dragoons, containing an account of its formation in the reign of King Charles the Second, and of its subsequent services to the present time. By General C. P. de Ainslie.

of the forthcoming dinner; but, should you know the addresses of any old Royals in your neighbourhood and will send them to me, I

will see thatanotice is forwarded to them.

rendered by you in aiding us in the preserv-

ation of the public peace during the late tumultuous scenes of the riot and disturbance ; and we are most anxious to express to

you our thanks for the energy and promptitude evinced by you in attending to our suggestions on all occasions. “ We also beg you, sir, to be good enough to convey to the ofﬁcers and privates of the Royal Dragoons, the Royal Horse Artillery, and the several detachments of infantry under your command, our thanks for their important services ; and we had the greatest pleasure in noticing the orderly and correct deportment in quarters of the non-commissioned ofﬁcers and privates of these corps, which has left on the minds of this communily a lasting impression of regard and respect. “We have the honour to be, Sir, "’ Your very obedient Servants,

“ (Signed)

“Joshua T_ R. Evans.

“James Jowitt. “James Lord. “ Jonah Harkofs. “John Grimshaw. “ Ralph Ousey, “ William Sidebottom. “John Sidebottom. “ Robert de Hollingswortb. “Lieut.«Col. MARTIN, K.H., 017717'na7ldll2g The Royal Dragoons.”

(Continued)

The regiment was inspected on the 14th of October by the Inspector-General of Cavalry,

“ Head-Quarters, N.~W. District, Chester, 18m Dec, 1842.

The list of names of all attending the Dinner

Major-Generalthe Honourable E. H. Lygon,

“ SIR,

will be printed as usual, but this is only possible if the names are sent early enough. If

O. B., and Lieutenant-Colonel Martin having retaken the command, received the following letter from the magistrates of Ashton-under— Lyne, and Staleybridge. “ AsHTON-UNDER-LYNE, November, 1842 “ SIR, “ We, the undersigned magistrates acting in the district and neighbourhood of Ashtonunder-Lyne, feel ourselves called upon by

" Major-General Sir William Warre has great satisfactionin communicating to you, and to request you will promulgate to the

you are able to attenxl, at least a weeks notice

of your intention is desirable, in order that the list may be correctly made out ; and on

receipt of the P. O. O. for 4/- I will forward ticket and information, I remain, Yours very truly,

KENNETH R. BALFOUR.

duty no less than inclination to express to

regiment under your command,

the follow-

ing extract from a letter he has received from LieutenantAGeneral Sir Thomas Arbuthnot, in which he is desired to inform you that the Lieutenant-General Commanding did not fail to bring to the Commander-in-Ohief‘s

notice the very eﬁicientstate in which he

EAGLE

165

found the Royal Dragoons and the very soldier-like and cheerful manner in which they performed their duties when called out in aid of the civil power during the late dis— turbances. And that the Duke of Wellington has derived much satisfaction from the perusal of these reports generally, as well as from the ass irances contained in the Lieutenant-General’s letter of the good order of the corps.” “\Slgﬂed, G. l). MUNDY, Major, Brigade-Major." “ THE OFFICER COMMANDING, Royal Dragoons, Manchester.” The head-quarters of the Royal Dragoons left Manchester for Brimingham on the 24th of April, 1843, detaching one tr00p to Coventry, one troop to Dudley, and one to Newcastleunder-Lyne. The regiment was inspected by Major-General the Honourable E. P. Lygon, O. B, on the 29th of August, and leaving Birmingham on the 17th of October, embarked at Liverpool on the 35th for Dublin, whence, on the 16th, it marched to Newbridge.

On the 24th of April, 1544, the regiment moved to Dublin, where, on the 30th of May, it was inspected by A'lajonGenei-al Wyndham, andagain by him on the 25th of September following. Major—General Wyndham inspected the Royals on the 12th of May, 1845, and on the 16th of September the head-quarters and one troop marched to Dundalk, detaching a squadron to Belturbet, one troop to Belfast, one troop to Monaghan, and one to Inniskilling. On the 2nd of Octooer, MajorGeneral Sir George Berkeley, KGB, Commanding the Belfast District, made an inspection of the reg ment, which, on the 12th of May, 1846, moved to Cork; and while <n the march in consequence of the disturbed condition of

a portion of the Limerick and Tipperary dis~ tricts, one tr00p was halted at Glonmel, and another at Carriek-on-Suir, and were employs; ed in conveying llour from the interion'ot‘

166,

(T. H E E A .G. L E

THE'EA’GLE

these districts for exportation to the English

three troops to Shefﬁeld, and one troop to

markets. , These disturbances, which at ﬁrst threatened to be serious, were suppressed by, the capture of most of theringleaders, when the country became quiet and settled On the arrival of the regiment at Cork, .011 the 27th of May, it was stationed as follows : headquarters and two troops at Cork, the re cruits and young horses at Ballincollig, one troop at Bandon, and a troop each at Clogr been, Waterford, and Clonmel. ~On-the 1st of June, Major-General Turner,

Lough borough. The regiment was inspected on the 3rd of June by Major-General Sir Wil-

commanding the Cork District. inspected the regiment, and again on the 5th of November. It was inspected by Major-General Turner on the 27th of May, 1847, and on the mm of September the regiment marched to Caliir,

arriving on the 16th, and detaching troops to Limerick, Rathkeale, and Newcastle.

On the

22nd of October it was inspected by Major. General Napier, C B. . On the 1st of April, 1818, in consequence of Horse Guards orders, dated respectively the 30th of July and 8rd of December, 1547,21 new pattern brass helmet, for the otiicers, gilt, and a; new pattern coatee with shorter

skirts,

were taken into wear iOn the :7th of May, the regiment was iii— spected by Major-General Napier, C. 23 , and. leaving Cahir on the 5th of June for New-

bridge, it embarked on the 13th at Dublin for Liverpool,where,on landing, the headq uarters and one troop proceeded to York, one troop to Newcastle-onTyne, a squadron to Leeds, one troop to Halifax, and one to Bradford. The regiment was inspected on the 18th of November by Major-General Thorne, C.B., commanding the Northern District. On the 3rd of September, 1849, the Royal Regiment of Dragoons was inspected by Major-General Britherton, C.B., Inspecting. General of Cavalry, and on the 22nd of Octoher by Major-General Thorne, C. B. On the 20th of April, 1850, the head-quar-

ters and two troops left York for Nottingham, occupying the barracks there, and detaching

liam Warre, commanding the District, and on the 3rd of August by Major-General Brother13011,,C.B. Major-General Sir William Warre inspected the regiment on the 27th of March, 1851, and on the lst of May it left Nottingham for Barnet, near London,

arriving there on the

9th, to remain pending the result of the first Great Exhibition opened in London on the 1st of May. The head-quarters and two troops were billeted in Barne‘r : two at iflnfield, one at Potter‘s Bar, and one at Whetstone. The dismounted men and heavy baggage had been sent to the barracks in Northampton on the 10th instant. The six troops of the Royal Dragoons as sembling in review order at Barnet, we; e there inspected by M ajOi General H. R. H. the Duke of Cambridge, K.G.M., on which occa~ sion His Royal Highness was pleased to pass a high encomium on their appearance. Having been inspected by Major-General Brotherton. (LB, on the 24th of July, the regiment on the 5th of August marched to

Brighton, arriving on the 9th and detaching 2:} troops to Christchurch.

On the 30th of the month, leaving Birmingham for Manchester, the Royals arrived there on the 8th of August, detachinga troop at Preston.

On the 12th, the regiment was inspected by Major-General H. R. H. the Duke of Cambridge, K.G-., Inspecting-General of Cavalry. Colonel Marten, K El, having commanded the Royal Regiment of Dragoons for the long period oi eighteen years, retired upon. half pay on the 4th of February, 1853, being succeeded by Major John Yorke. This muchrespected ofﬁcer died on the 28rd of NovemA ber, 1865, a Lieutenant-General and Cononel of the 6th or Inniskilling Dragoons. On the lst of September, MajonGeneral H. R. H tiic Duke of Cambridge, K G, made an inspection of the regiment (To be continued.)

a Now that we have come to a new station,

try stronghold of Hinduism, it behoves us .to and become in a small way familiar With the people among whom we are. To the average oi soldier. surrounded as he is With the scum ,[ndianis the of mind the castes, Hindu the more or leSs a blank. We try to understand charthem, while they, the greatest readers of in statement Roberts’ Lord acter—~wiiness

On the 14th of April, 1852, the Royal Dra-

his “ Forty-One Years in Iiitlia”.—ha.vevgauged

us with all our pct foibles and idiosyncrames in in a very short time. I propose, therefore, you a series of short pipers, to'put before descriptions of this town and its surrounding buildtownships, their principal temples,their ings, the religion of the people, their . festivthe als and their customs. I’do' this lWlbh

new guidons, the old ones now replaced having been in wear about twenty-four years. The motto of the regiment, Spectemzw' Agenda, did

not appear upon the new guidons by order of the Inspector of Colours, but it has since been restored. The regiment left Brighton for Dorchester on the 22nd of June, and when on route at Ringwood, received orders to halt, and on the

29th it was ordered to Birmingham, where it arrived on the 8th of July, detaching thence

four troops to Coventry under Major J. Yorke,

167‘

ernor of these Provinces went out of his way ‘

on the departure of the regiment to write to , the Officer Commanding a letter thanking him, his ofﬁcers and his men for having maintained such a friendly spirit with the native popu-: lation during the stay of the regiment in this station. This was followed by an eulogistic leader in the Pioneer of the 4th instant, on the conduct of the regiment, pointing out the.

policy of the Government 1 n these days, which may be summed up in the sentence “Know the Indian better." if you don't know him: study him and treat him as-a man of sense, sentiment and understanding This success of the 15th Hussars was made by the Pioneer a peg to hang up the advice to all the military in India to help the Government by kindness and consideration to our subjects. Now we as a regiment do not give ﬁrst place to any in the British army when it becomes a

MUTTRA.

goons paraded in review order: for the inspec— tion of their Colonel, Lieutenant-General Sir Arthur B. Clifton, KGB, K.C.H., and with

friends and object of gaining for our lndian the fact that servants more tolerance from

understand knowing them better we IWIH here, the stay their During them better. very popular themselves made Hussars 15th the 'oﬂicers with the Indians of this city, and entertainments grateful of were recipients held in their honour. The LieutenantGov-

question of behaving like soldiers and gentleWe do not look forward to pleasant men farewell entertainment-s or congratulatory paragraphs in newspapers as a send-oft when we leave the country. Simply because we help

the Government by following its policy, we will try herein to knowour Indian neighbour

better, to come to know h in socially if he wives us the chance, and to DEVH in our inter-

:ourse with him a spirit of toleration as the ' .0 stone to friendship. Sbsfljiliigtjuin now to our subject. I will first Muttra deal with the antiquity of the city. or Mathurawas it is sometimes written—has ﬁxed in history right away iiito.dim antiquity. We will not discuss the dams of the re. Hindu sacred writings as to i‘s age or its

ligion, but ﬁrst iecord outsideondence as to its condition.

The

ﬁrst foreigner .Who

hes

written of Muttrais perhaps the Chinese p11. Grim Fa-l—lian, who visited it when it was acentyre ofBuddhism, approximately in the year 400 A, D. Some two hundred )‘Eﬂi‘silniel‘, another

celestial, Hweu Thsang, visited this capital. Both have written much of eX'siaut Buddhist shrines, monastries and convonts. all destroy.

”8

THE

ed, alas ! by successive invaders, and perhaps by the Brahmans themselves when Hinduism again became the dominant religion. Conﬁrmation of the writings of these Chinese travellers has, however, been fully obtained by the discovery in 1853 of a number of Buddhis~ tic carvings, images and writings by General Cunningham, a name well known to archaeological students of this country. Again in 1860, and still later on during the stay in the district of Mr. F. S. Growse, B 0.8., 0 LE, as Collector and Magistrate, a number of inscribed monuments, carved groups and images were found, all of Buddhistic origin. Some of these are stored away in the local museum on the Agra~Delhi road, a short distance beyond the court-house and near the public gardens. [ may mention in passing that the museum itself is a monument of the sculptor’s art. It is a pity that the contents

'l‘ H E

EAGLE The ﬁrst Westerner,

who visited Muttra,

was the French priest Tavernier, about the year 1650, in testimony of which visit an inscribed tablet, now broken across, is to be seen in the verandah of the priest’s house in cantonments. Tavernier was followed by another French man, Bernier, who visited the

city, and also wrote of it in 1663.

Whether

Hinduism pure and simple preceded the reign of Buddhism in A. D. 600 in these parts is a question for argument. Greek historians

say yes, and the Chinese travellers, already

we as anation

Ophy,

mathematics,

astronomy, sculpture.

clothes, and houses, and they knew the value

0f precious metals for adornment and cur_ rency On the decline of Buddhism, the city again

brought face to face with the halo of antiquity

took a foremost position in Hinduism as the

surrounding each battered bust or animated

birthplace of the divine Krishna.

Muttra in

ﬁgure. Being the Bethlehem of Hinduism, this

the ancient histories took rank as the second

city, as a centre of religion, has kept alive, as did Rome, all the artistic elements of the

of the capitals of the Lunar race.

has often been remarked that a river view of Muttrais much like Venice, and we recommend a trip by boat any evening up to the old fort, hoary with age, on the outskirts of the

city, and back again past the railway bridge to the Jumna bagh, or gardens, near the Those proposing to avail Sudder Bazaar. themselves of the trip should take with them

a riﬂe to shoot the crocodiles and alligators to be met with on the river.

SHAMUS.

In the

heart of the city in ancient Hindu times was the immense temple dedicated to Kaseva Deva, but this was destroyed absolutely by the Moghal Emperor Aurungzeb in 1669, and on the ruins of the temple was built the mosque which now stands dominating the

SOUTH AFRICAN LETTERS. LICHTENSTEIN, O. R. 0., DEAR M, The last day on the back nothing on." you think we

Hinduism which like the river goes on for

ever, inSpiring countless millions with faith and devotion. Let us then, during our stay in this station,

try and remember always that we are among people with more ancient written histories than ourselves, with habits more conservative and unbending than that of our oldest aristocracy, that they are thrifty, most laborious

of October, according to a note of an envelope, was “ﬁne, I hasten to assure you, lest have returned to a savage

state, that the latter part of the entry does After being washed not refer to clothing. out of camp three times in thirtysix hours

the fact of the day being tine, appears (to us) important and worth recording.

After one of these storms when the coun try was enveloped in darkness,a sunbeam burst through a rift in the clouds, shooting straight through the gloom in a broad white

shaftlike asearch-light, on toa hill twelve miles distant, throwing it out in bold relief against the surrounding blackness. The prominent features of the hill shone like silver

city, it is true, but not the spiritual side of

169

on the river by the stars, and adepts in the art 0f kloof-searching. Boers were reported here, there, and everywhere, but they had an objectionable custom of being anywhere but where they were reported to be, having a knack of turning up at a certain point, either the night before or the night after our surprise visits One morning the dawn revealed to the outpostsa party of forty Boers with led horses quietly trekking along the veldt. The inlying pic iuet went out in pursuit and shot several horses, but failed to make a capture

and pulled up ten miles from camp, having

were Barbarians, living in

woods with no clothes, no religion, and no arms or implements, here in Muttra they

book giving the history of each ﬁnd. This is a volume much needed, and we commend our remarks to the Collector and Magistrate who perhaps can arrange to supply the want. As things now am, the average visitor is not

local sculptors. A drive through the city repays one abundantly in this direction. it

illuminated.

30th November, 1901.

had monarchical government, religion, philos-

wealth of carvings, the temples and private houses to admire the delicate work of the

festival of lights, is being celebrated. To-night

and tomorrow night the city Will be profusely

mentioned, say no, or at least are silent. We will accept for our agreement with Greek historians that this was a stronghold of Hinduism anterior to the rise of Buddhism. The Hindu writings prove conclusively that while

of the building are not tabulated in a printed

people. One has only to visit the city with its

and patient, that their ﬁlial devotion is ad mirable, while as parents they are second to none in love for their children. These traits will be found even among our menial sere Vants, but to know a well educated Indian gentleman is to admire him in many ways. In my second paper I purpose writing of the birth and life of Krishna—*As i write a. very interesting festival, “ Devali " or the

EAoLE

whilst

the

shadows were

intensely

black. The effect was very tine, and when coloured by arainoow, only visible on the hill, wonderfully pretty. On the first day of this month we brought in several waggon loads of wheat and some Boer women and children. During the next few days we became quite proﬁcient in ﬁnding the various drifts

seen two bodies of the enemy several hundred strong. Afew nights afterwardsl was awakened at midnight by the exceedingly sulphurons language ofa sentry, and found the unfor-

tunate man, unable to move hand or foot, in the centre of a troop of horses who had pulled up the picketing‘ gear and got entangled in the ropes. Rousing the troop, we extricated the sentry. unwound the horses, re-pitched the lines, and silence once more reigned over the camp for about an hour and-a-half—we

were up at 2 .A,M. My troop left camp at 3-45 A.M.. and having picked up two prisoners at the Boer

hospital,

rejoined

the squadron

with a convoy proceeding to Pampasfontein, and took up position as right ﬂank guard,

We saw traces ofa recent Boer laager ina kloof at Yzerforkfontein. instead of halting at the latter place for the night we pushed on and oi‘fsaddled at -l P.M., four miles east of Panipasfontein. News arrived two hours later that the Boers had attacited the yenmanry near this place and captured a maxim:

also that 500 Boers had attacaed Taylor at Waalpoort. but were repulsed, retired southwest and were supposed to be near Pampasfontein. Our Commanding Ofﬁcer booked as front seats, we were on the move again at 7 P.M. and rode into the theatre of action.

170

THE

The performance. however, was disappointmg, we scoured round for several duyS, but the curtain had been dropped ——enemy disappeared DeWet Wts supposed to be in command. Marching back to Lichtenstein 0n the .7th, my troop was rear guard and near Driefontein we saw a body of mounted men, seven or eight hundred strong ; they detach-

ed about a hundred men to cut my troop off. We dismounted and Lock up position on a hill, covering the convoy, and presently with the aid of glasses made them out to be British, so when they galloped up with the wild glare of battle in their eyes, are received them with broad grins, and criticisms on their method of attacking a hill. They were

Pilcher’s column from Smithﬁeld A few more miles along the road a helio at Lichtenstein started to wink, and informed us that Brand was at Leukop with 200 men.

We kept our weathereye on this hill as

passed, but saw nothing of the enemy. On arrival in camp, at 4 P.M., heard that Brand

had captured one of our scouts and shot a kaﬁr, who was with him. Our doctor had met

Band at the Boer hospital the previous night. On the 18th two squadrons with a pom-pom turned out at 7 P.M., and were recalled after trekking about seven miles, the why and wherefore of this Change of plans giving rise

to many rumours—the strongest being that Pilcher’s column had been chasing a commando all day. which turned out to be the South African Light Horse ! We scoured round again for a. few more

days and nights, turning out at all sorts of unearthly times, and turning up at all sorts of places at or just before the cold grey dawn to be rewarded with the sight of half-adozeri disreputable-looking vultures sitting on the carcass of an ox or a horse, a few ashes, and

perchance a ﬂeeting glimpse of a mounted man or a. film of dust in the far distance .

Reports kept the

ball rolling—“Brand at

Windyk0p.” “ Brand escaped

north," etc.,

EAGLE etc

Then we had the welcmne news that

Jou bert‘s commando had been

THE EAGLE

171

surprised

three killed, seven wounded, and remainder: captured, except Joubert himself and a few men On the night of the 25th we (one squadron) went out on a night march to a hill called Lessenskop, about fifteen miles from camp. On arrival we lay up till daybreak and sun prised a small party of Boers who had biv~ ouacked close by, we took six prisoners, includingCommandantJoubertandV eldL-Cornet Wolmarans, the former fired at us until he fell severely wounded. The news Was flashed back by helio and an ambulanc e came out for Joubert.

On the 28th we escorted Boer prisoners to Yzerforkfontein and handed them over to Pilcher‘s column, who had thirty of Joubert‘ s

commando and seven women. Yesterday reports came in that 300 Boers were trying to cross the river, so we are bold ing the drifts One of our scouts (Green) was chased by five Boers whilst carrying a. despatch to a place twelve miles distant last night; be, however, fired and escaped The weather lately has been hot and stormy. We have had a few cases of enteric, otherwise the health of the regiment is good, both men and horses being very fit. Of the places mentioned in this le'ter Smithfield is the only town, the other name s, are merely isolated farms. It is now 9 P..v1., and I was just thinking of sleep, when the Orderly Sergeant crawled

devoteachapter to this important subject. Old horse-masters used to say that good grooming is equivalent to a feed of corn, and though I used to doubt the truth of this, I saw practical proof of its accuracy on serVIce. l noticed the horses which did most work, and still kept condition, were those who~e owners made the best use of the brush l have nodoubt whatever that horses which require to be in high condition can only be maintained ﬁt for the work required of them by a gOod system of grooming, In India, syces clean their horses on a different system to that adopted by a good stable

lad

home,

and of the two Iam

inclined to favour the Indian system; but it must be remembered that in India every horse has its own syce, whereas in England a stable lad dresses down two and even thr ee horses.

With him, timeis an item not con.

sidered by the syce. As the English system is universally adopted in troop stables in India, I propose to consider this ﬁrst. A horse on high feeding. unless its digesti nis assisted by the healthy action of the skin, will soon show signs of irritation,

ﬁrst by rubbing the eyes and ears against any convenient place, and then by rubbing the dock and buttocks. To clean the head, nos-

trils, eyes, ears and dock, therefore, with sponge and water, is the ﬁrst consideration,

into my “ bivy ” on his hands and knees, and

ﬁnishing with the rubber and brush all over

said uith a. grin, “Night march at 1] o’clock!"' Yours. etc.,

the head, which, for this purpose, should be

0L -OL. HORSE MANGEMENT IN INDIA BY COL. H. DE B. DE LISLE, C.B., D. S. 0, Continued)

GROOMING. The state of a stable depends so much on the way horses are groomed, that I must

the same amount of attention. The feet must be cleaned with the hoof-pick and dry brush, and must never be washed. In India washing is most harmful. In England it is also wrong, but there horses being more accustomed to damp legs do not show the consequences as quickly as in India. I recently visited a stable in India where four out of six horses were unﬁt for work. After trying to discover the cause, I saw that the English groom in charge had taught the syces to wash the feet whenever they cleaned their horses. Three of the horses were laid up for several months with seedy toe‘ and sand crack, and the other three had mud fever, the legs being ﬁlled and hot, and the

skin rough.

Imention this typical case to

impress my readers how essential it is to keep the legs and feet dry. During the rains, this entails considerable manual labour, but is nevertheless essential.

Cleaning the feet and legs is so important, that it should be completed before the body and back is commenced. If taken in the reverse order, a man leaves the most impor-

tant part till the end, when his arms and back are tired. Insist, therefore, on the order I recommend, and when visiting the stable, if any man is at work on the body, feel the legs to see if they are smooth and clean, using the thumb round the coronet, and in the hollow above the hook, formed by the 0.9 claszs and the tendon, to see no particles of loosened skin remain. If the groom

released from the head collar. Before replacing the head collar, it should be sponged over with soap and water, and when dried clean, it must be replaced. The next mostimportant part lies in the feet and legs. These should be brushed over : ﬁrst with the dandy brush and afterwards polished with the body brush, especially round the coronets. Brushing the coronets induces an even and healthy growth of the

afﬁrms he has not ﬁnished the legs, inSist on

horn of the foot, so noticeable in race-horses

With the body brush, used with a circular

and so wantingin others which do not get

motion against the hair.

his doing so before he begins the body. Having ﬁnished the legs and feet, the quarters, back, neck and body should be cleaned in the above order, beginning just above the near hock and working against the hair up to the ears

At ﬁrst the dandy brush

Should be used to remove the caked sweat and to icosen all scurf from the roots of the hair, but most of

the real work

should

done

In this way the

THE brush performs three times the work when used with the hair—a fact well known to all hair—dressers who would never think of using the machine brush in any other way. When all the scurf is removed from every part of

the horse, the hair can be polished with the grain, ﬁrst with the brush and afterwards with a cloth or leather to give it that bright polished appearance which is the hall-mark of health and good stable manage ment. When cleaned, a sheet can be put on, care being taken that it is not dragged on against the hair. and all four legs bandaged from the

coronets to the knees and hooks. Good grooming is rapid work, and a smart lad will do over a horse in half—an-hour, The mane and tail must not be omitted, but can be left to the last, especially the tail, because horses enjoy the tail»cleaning, and will eat their corn undisturbed during the process. For this reason I prefer to see the tail-clean-

ing carried on after the feeds

have been

given. To clean hair, the brush only should be used, the hair being separated look by lock, and brushed out until every hair falls alone and the ﬁngers drawn through them meets with no opposition.

Good stable work depends very much on good supervision, so every horse-owner should know how to examine a horse to see if well cleaned. To do this thoroughly, ﬁrst stand in front of the horse and rub the hand over the forehead against the hair, round the

ears and under the neck and jaws.

Standing

on the near side, bend down, pick up the near forefo it, and after releasing it, feel the coronet with ﬁnger and thumb, and bring the hand up the leg on the mside. Feel the breast between the forelegs and move the hand back under the belly, over the quarters, down to the hock. Keeping the right hand

on the hock, pass the left up the thigh and under the ﬂank. Examine the near hind leg and foot, pass the open ﬁngers through the hair of the tail, and then draw the right hand

up the quarters, back and neck against the

EAGLE

THE

hair. Afterwards the offside may be simi— larly examined Any part not clean will show

marks of scurf and feel gritty. I do not mean every horse must be thoroughly examined every day, but to ensure good work, every horse must be open to examination every day, and unless some one supervises work, it is seldom satisfactory.

Having given in detail the arduous work of grooming as carried out by English grooms, as well as by Cavalry soldiers, I will now

explain the difference between that and the system employed by a ﬁrst-class Indian syce. The ﬁrst part, as far as the completion of the legs, is identical, but before the body is begun, the syce will wring out a wet cloth and

damp the hair against the

grain

Then

standing well away from the horse, he puts in an hour’s hand rubbing, using the palm, wrist and forearm slightly damped, and rubbing out all old hair and scurf. It is very hard work, and a strong syce, stripped to the buff, will sweat with the exertion.

The horse

enjoys this massage, and from delight will bite and kick during the process, unless tied up. All the belly muscles resist the action of the syce, and by the resistance are strengthened to assist digestion. In fact, an hour's malish or hand-rubbing is an hour’s exercise for man and horse After this, the horse is polished over with the body brush, but even then it is not ﬁnished, but gets ﬁfteen minutes’ tapee with heavy leather pads, one» in each hand. These are brought down with much force on the shoulders, back and quarters, avoiding the loin, and do much to bring up a muscular development. To see this work well done, a visit should

be paid to the stables of. a ﬁrst~class

cope with, and in no department is the custom more pronounced than in an Indian stable. The bunia gives the syce one to one and a.

half-annas per maund consumed, the grass contractor always brings short grass, and this is winked at by the syce who gets his monthly gratuity, and so on with all the other natives who provide articles, or do work for

the stable. The cause is not far to seek. The syce is a valuable servant and much underpaid. If good syces are provided, they must be given gratuities by the master or Will make them at the expense of the horses Even good syces require

supervision,

and

especially in the cleanliness of the stable and

the way the feet are brushed.

Unless taught

to polish legs and feet, and to clean inanes and of tails, they are inclined to neglect this part must they way same the 1n thegrooming. and be taught how to preserve leather-work horse and saddles of panels to brush the clothing. Carefully taught, the syce is an excellent horse servant,who really becomes fond of his master. his please to is desire chief and whose after a Jemadars are necessary evils, and well are syces the If time become rapacious. be always can place jemadar’s trained, the in he, until tilled by promoting another syce, Even greedy. unbearably his turn, becomes master will with good syces, the eye of the [n.nothing always produce the best results, and grooming, in than is this more noticeable visit the stable 1 recommend the novice to

his v1s1t should daily, and whenever possible, for grooming hour take place during the than the Thereis no truer saying

verb:

Arab pro-

“The eye of the master makes

the

horse fat

(To be continued.)

trainer,

after which no further recommendation of the system will be needed, for the result is so noticeable Before leaving the subject of syces’ work,

I must mention the points in which they fail. The subject of dasturi is a difﬁcult one to

173

EAGLE

SERGEANTS’ MESS NOTES. e lse a soldier. isa Perhaps more than anyone knack of adapting blessed with the happy k,

and, so to spea himself to circumstances, that, although we is it . no a in . ” Certain "' ﬁtti

have been in Muttra only a little more than a. week, one

would gather from appearances

that we had been here years.

Work com-

menced right away after our arrival, and now Squadron Training is in full swing, and the Riding School is the usual cloud of dust,

While the marching to and fro of spurred and armed men, the trumpet calls, and the many other familiar sights and sounds of the drill season go on throughout the day There has been a distinct change in the weather The n ildness of a week ago has h been succeeded by a cold snap, and althoug

the days are never anything but war-ma the early mornings are crisply cold, and It'lS quite cheering to note the absence of languid: ness among the men, while the frisky freshness of our mounts is equally delightful

From the point of view of the members of the Mess, the march from Lucknow was a

very pleasant one.

The easy marches, the

cheerfully and quickly-performed work of putting down lines and pitching tents each g day, the afternoon shoots, and the evenin

“ bucks "in the Mess tent, all combined to render the period more like a holiday than work. At Cawnpore we were generously entered tained by the Cameron ans who are station were we evening same the while place, at that of the able to .0ffer hospitality to a number were who , Hussars 15th the of Mess members the along horses nt’s Regime their taking to the same road to Lucknow, to hand over . 8th HuSsars. are Irish Royal 18th the where Agra, At an entertain~ stationed, we were recipients of

Mess ment by this Regiment’s Sergeants’ us genero true in us d receive who s, member station, Irish fashion. Their presence in a

only about an hour's train ride from Muttra, many inleads us to hope that there will be stay our terchanges of hospitality during cannot I subject, this on here. And while Light refrain from mention of the Highland we solInfantry, the regiment with whom

TH'E 174

THE

diered in I ucknow, and with whom we are very sorry to part. Nothing could exceed the kindliness. and thoughtfulness of the mern bers of that corps in their treatment of us while in the station, and this was even more

exempliﬁed on our departure

Nota party of

us left Lucanow without a cheery parting word, and something more substantial, if no: more appreciated, in the way of a generously—

ﬁlled hamper.

Mainly instrumental in this

was that cheery old ioznrade “The Sheik ” to whom I have previously refer red in these columns. Tiiat this hospitality is not Conﬁned to the non-commiSsioned ranks of the Hioh— land Light infantry is evident from fact that our oﬂicers are equally enthusiastic over their reception on several occasions by the

ofﬁcers of that regiment.

In taking this op-

portunity of acknowledging the kindness of

the Highland Light Infantry, we thank Sergeant-Major Howes and the members of his mess, and wish them jolly good luck. Determined that our change of stations and the absence of other messes, should not mean the cessation of all social functions we

have held two dances since our arrival

both

of which were very enjoyable Our new: mess is not nea ly as large as the one in Lucknow

but this diﬂ‘iculty will be overcome shortly as we intend to convert one verandah intb a permanent dining-room. The only place of amusement outside our mess is the Masonic

Club, which is situated on the outskirts of barracks In Connection with the Lodve is this club for Masonic and non-Masonic Elembers equally ; there is a ﬁne room for read— ing and dining, which, as occasion demands can be male to accommodate a goodly num: ber of dancers. 1n the compound are two excellent tennis courts, which provide good fun, and better exercise, for a number of members nightly. There are several Departmental subordinates in the station, and these with their ladies are all members, so that in

spite of our isolation we are not so badly off as we anticipated.

The secretary of the club

EAGLE

their deepest sympathy to the family of the

IS Mr. Bolland, Supply and Tran sport Corps and as he was stationed in LUC le ‘WV d n liljég, the early part of our stay there We are not

altogether strangers

’

Several members of the Mess visit ed Lucknow during Army Cup Week. and we shall doubtless hear all the news from on r late station We have to acknowledge with many thanks a charming gift in the shape of a water-colon:

painting of an Oﬂicer of The Royal llraooon s in review order, mounted, it is a per feet: little specimen of the painter’s art and '~ richly framed, bearingatabiet on whin h ‘15 the donor’s name—Mr. F. G. Sykes of (l‘rhells

tenham

It was brought from borne by Ser-

geant-Major Cooke, through whom the 0rift wa made. Mr. Sykes, whois afriend ofSebroeantS Major Cooke’s, is a stranger to the Mes: but we greatly appreciate his gift, and hope some day to thank him personally The third annual Old Comrades” dinne r was held in London a day or two ago, and a cable gram was despatched by the Mess to wish gOOd cheer to all our old friends. We bone as must surely have been the case, the occas ,ion was no less successful than its forerunners We left behind, at Lucknow, an old member of the

Regiment in the person of Sertreant

“ Barney ” Williams, who has since procgeded

home, with his family, in the Troopship “Plassy ” Williams, who served twenty-one years with the Regiment, was a type of the good old soldier, and he leaves behind him a reputation for Smartness, and cleanliness and also, which perhaps is better still, his sari Charles. who was enlisted some months ago and who will, we hope, follow in his fathebr’s’ footsteps May good fortune attend “Barney” Williams and his family in their new life. Letters have been recently received from

Captain Parsons, Sergeant-Major Stuart and

Sergeant Weston, all of whom, I am pleiased to state, are doing and keeping well at home The members of the Sergeants’ Mess otter

late Lieutenant Rube, By his interestiniall things sporting, and his readiness to support and assist any sporting underta‘iug, no less than by his genivli manner, the late ofﬁcer endeared himself to all ranks, but more particularly was this so in the Sergeants’ Mess, by the members of which

he was

greatly

admired and esteemed. His sudden death was a great shock and a great loss to us all. “ SEKGEANT.”

REGIMENT it?GAZETTE. Promotions. Surat. Ver‘rr eulen, West Afr can Front er Form, to be

SSM Certiﬁcates.

953, be --Corplr Kingsley

warded 2rid Class cnrtiﬁ 'ate Of Education.

5860 5876. S. S. 5870 Pte. " 1273

Murphv “ Reardon Pearsoi Henry

1760

’l‘ott

1759 1024 1457 1378 2052 ——

“ 3rd

Si rrmonds Phil ox Stockweil Sullivan " Heiiriessey Rahn

" ' '

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.. s: ,. .4

“

u u

i. d

1900: 383,

u u

H “

755 831

Raine

U.P.

Lluht Horse as In-

struct tr t, erred to Home Establishmen n 588i, Pie Mlirp ry transf H "

. ‘ after 2nd period of en§300. Sergt. O apcott discharged gageme ., rrt, .“ lst “ “ 4194 Tpr. Alien u ‘ ’837

4195 Ptc W iilams

70%, Sergt. Mitz-heil “

Transferred to Army Reserve, 5208, Sergt S tchell 5412, Corpi Murkett 5212, Lea-Corpi Eshmeade Taylor “ 5258 Gallzrtiy “ 5750 " Ca t 5420 “ Rising 5490 “ Talbot 550ll 511.17, P‘tc. Brooks Warner 5708 “ {{eiuc 5214 5224 “ Shurrner

5:320

“

Smith

5220 5232 5237

" “ “

lssaus Chandler Flippance

5474

“

Smirh

5503 5517 5544 5215 5255 5743 5274 5272

“

Holmes . Collier Porter Perkins ‘ eman Blak “ McDongall h Smit l larke

Getl fie

5281 5200 r ‘

‘

Stribuling Franms HJZ‘L‘ll

57763. Pte. Black 5299, Pte.’1‘omkins .1 Oliver 5352 5306 “ Brant Stephenson 5303 Bently Foale 5310 Myail McAlliStel’ 5771 Ciar e Mr-intosh 5804 Lang ey W ls-rn Merrick 5317 Ti‘elrle Maytiim 555i lve‘ Pufford 5555 Humphreys Bishon 5573 Brightweii Be-l 5328 Duckworth Wright 5752 Coir HuilPl‘ 5807 Mere lith iloilnnri 5115 Wilson Webster 5351 Hrrbirs 5554 Hinzei‘ y 5309 R My 5466 5322 Sergl. Jamie~on Wakeneil 5809 5206 Lca-Corpl D y Underhill Cuthbertson57ii4 5240 C rrol 5773 “ Ennis 5329 Kiii rht 5811 “ Payne 5407 Mr Gr~ gor 5812 “ Rivett 5443 Brian “ whitirl n g 5415 5493 Coombes 5815 ham. Dye 5888 “ Stone 5553 Butcher 5813 .Javkson 5797 Alrler 5406 5770 “ Reilly Combpr 58i6 Scarfe 5221 Br y 5428 Herman 5800 Arnold 5453 “ Baxter 5801 “ Roy .l Scots Gr ys " "he follow rig Draft from rue taken on strength of the Regiment from 215i. October,

Strength. Own ” Regim from “ King’s .. ent. Pte Morley transferred u «

SSA/I. Greenland posted to th

EAGLE

5230. Pte Ne\vt0n 5265 “ Le g” “ Nichols 5244 . HHWKins 5451 ' Watson 5506 Yates Plumb Mason S ik Marvell Cl‘iiwhurst

“

Pte. “ “ “ 1247 1382 144:

Maurri Barlow Keinian McLeod Grubb

1507 2ir37 2059 2074

Hit: 5 Hall Murray Carter Whiting Phirnot Horton Edgar Smith Mould Pounck Stewart Walker Brewer Harris Hor . ii Sowden [Jr W Smith Robertson Pearse Jones Burkett Cleary

2232 2304 2603

2630 2644 2701

2722 2740 2805

28:0 2824 2833 2858 2874 2851

2001 2904

'9 2 30:6 2,094

G’ilib

721. Pte. Clarke Hebner 8i4 1246 n 30:5 1313 nn Surely 1397 u Ros-1480 u Clarke 1983 s Giles 2034 n butler Imrie 2060 2208 u Green 2259 u Porter Penlo d 2600 t 2623 u Walker Harvey 2632 u Dewar 2073 2705 un Dubock 2739 u Meecham Pratt 2778 2309, Boy Compton 2322, Pie . Brands Stevens 2830 2851. Boy Churchill 2866. Rte. Wild David 2880 i. Pittlck 2888 Brown 2903 Neary 2906 Giddes 2930 Dunn 2940 Peyton 2998

Wolfe Stares

3011

Smith

3080

3043

Scrimgeour

Lyl‘rﬁ‘iﬂ

Menkes

Dinning Stock Hamilton

3080 3,00

Walker Whittaker

3097 3804

steveus Mannie

Thompson

3369

Ferd) r

Fitzgerald

Marriages. nernurnerary gist) has been taken (Sn ald ei‘ zli Fit ‘ i‘gt. blishment, ength 0 i Married Esta be on the str Births. Allen. of a. daughter, 24th October, The wife oi [(519%November, Bandin ister Holt, of a son, 8th u 1909 1000. October Serwt, Coe. of 2i daughter. 9th “ 1909. "D Rutcliﬂ'e, of a son, 3nd November, ..

Wilkinson lr liith S -. 'lrple Viney Robson Wii iarnson Rii-hardson Cook Watson Belcher Corner

3805 '

3039

Eraser

.hodis Publishing ouse, LUCKNOW.

(She angle. A MONTHLY CHRONICLE OF THE ROYAL DRAGOONS. “ SPECTEMUR AGENDO.”

Christmas

Cards

and

Pictorial

Post

engraved, in endless variety. greetings from Lucknow.

Cards

with greetings

all

DECEMBER,

descriptions, Leather

Goods, .comprising

:— Suim-rlplimzs lo " 77w Eagle“ are asfnllows .. .. Subscribers a! home. mramiam .. n " ‘w-N in India ' dub and mm , A .. , Innissiunul ofliru'x No) f 11,152???“ (DNNPILL zlzunbcrs or Illf'll’UI/Ulb‘), ' . . (III Ila/II.

’

‘ ﬁ E

the Xmas performance will

come off yet.

ovelties of

S. F'.—IE seems likely MU'I'TILA. lSDIA.

Dolls, Toys and Games unpacked, in endless varie ty 0

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS.

EDITORIAL NOTlCES.

Jewelled Post Cards with

No. 19.

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER l5’lH, 1909.

VOL. 111.

verythmg that you have to buy for Presents may be had at prices to suit all pockets.

Variety, Endless, to select from.

Day us a Visit and See for Yourself.

1009.

J. T, E.—Yes, Muttra, and “ Muthura ” are one and the same place, but nowadays the former is the more common way of spelling in. include TROOP-SERGEAN’r.—-’l‘hanks, quite funny -, we it herein. is DIFFIDENT. v- On the contrary. Our complaint

:13. ml. It’s. fi-H—U

IIEI' .. .. . . Price per copy In afllcerx ,. n+0 officrrs and mm .. Price per copy to Ilflll‘cOllllllL-QSZ/fllléd flu Edilor. 861/260 be should (til/.‘Il/Lceaml in (la? AS'LLbscripliolm are in acknowledged br a'ill 0’0 T116 [loyal [Mar/001m, All Ioniiélalm/x llfir’l‘ real/N. [thlLN/Mtb [mm-r [be of number ma-f b/ll' or lcarr on. m'orrmliny , . . .‘w'rlbscribrrs dimming tbfir add/'11. x/Loulvl zlolify (be Editor of the furl/mall. or laavmr/ i/M Her/mm” near adrlréss. arc Isl/pl in. stock and can. be had .l Zinzilml number of back copies on appliuation. to the Earl/1r.

the rank that we cannot getsutﬁcient news from

and ﬁle. declaiu F. W.«'l‘he liegiment- left Bloemhof, on the 20th, anion of peace, for Bloemfontein, June 1902 will be most NICHOLAS —-News from the Garden City

publication in. " The Eagle " All oommznzicalions inlémlal for HM off/re paper only, addressed in should be written on om Sillé the. a'rilrr's name and address, by anial arcomp bé s/zoulrl and Editor. i wjerzu any for be responsibly The Editor will not [nub-rial} to

welcome Regiment will ANXIOUS.~AS far as we know, the leave India for Africa during the Relief Season

do so. no! la! (lmzlribulions slzoalrl rum/1. lbr Erli/or lib llza! mom/1‘s €{ICIL IIZUILl/l. to «Ilsa/w publication

Eagle T. T. E —Regret not a copy of No. 1 of The

y desired lo Moi. nor [,7 ”mp” (my matribuiimi, unless smrlall

of 19‘ I-l'l.

than. the: 5H1. of ‘, e.

left.

friends arr asked to commuJlembkrs. past am! DIWSA'Nf, and flair our 1mm [1‘ ly to Dr of [INC/'(‘St Io m’valc in HM Fa’itnr any lien) of -mémbtl‘.\' Hall was of larly particu Itolirul bun Has rmvlnrx, 1/ roux/2msac/i. am], Royals. pros-mt l; isI'ryarLIaliL‘itlz r/rul! izzlcresl by Ill/m tlllll butinlﬂini/iy t/zallz‘li of/m 17017612 yiimm‘bm arcflza mm ‘ of ifabl which is ”be primary ubju‘z‘ bdwem past ali(l1.)r('.\'ull. inqui(my him to jag/”pirmiflitr inrifrs rwaIr-rx {0 submit by reason of lulrina acress In lti I. /Ir may b» able to anva‘rr .4 far as bani/1141. by Ila/ll Mi "'1, WHIN. eply ‘pa/ulznix.“ ll‘lm'z: 12rc1xx¢a'y.ar ('orrerl m s .lILS/lzl' " zualm‘ will] sun. bylz-Itrr a‘illln

as well

paper in This being the last number of our g our wishin of unity opport 1909, we take the past and ns, Dragoo Royal all and readers, mas, and a. present, a right Merry Christ

Happy New Year.

'lflllZul on application {n Rails/or.lrlru‘fiwnmzix can. llctlSutl (he Editor.

-iv 'l‘imv. " Gazette," " H. ll, 1. Chronicle." "The Blossom

tc ' " The Essex Regiment Hay Service Corps Journal,“ been received :— The following subscriptions to The Flu/Zn have Rs. A. P‘ 0

Mr. F. Stures

LU CK NO W.

is available,

MONTHLY NOTES.

the receipt of the follow“'1: beg to acknowledge with Lliunlis 1’ ing conicmporuribs While Lancer.“ " The X. RH “ St. George's (hr/lute." "l‘hc

Methodist Publishing House,

Volume II, bound,

r). as a few copies of l907 (May to Decembe

. .

Corporal Richardson ,. . October

me 11, Bound copies of Volu ) per copy. .Z’ricc, Rs. 5 60-63-50

0 «i

Eagle has Commenced in April, 1907, The on. cessati t withou gone on appearing monthly

in publica» At times there have been delays the numbers tion, and occasionally, perhaps, might be as have not been quite as newsy

sion expected, and for these sins of commis apolohumbly staﬁ r amateu the n, and omissio is popular, gises. That the paper, however, letters ' many the than proof we need no better from us d of congratulation that have reache

"fact leads many parts of the world, and this

178

THE'EAGLE-

us on to greater efforts: At the same time these efforts will be fruitless, unless we have

the co-operation ‘of all those in whose interest the paper exists. And by cooperation, to be quite plain, we mean, not merely moral,

but practical support. When The Eagle ﬁrst saw the light, it was

announced that its mison d’r‘M'c was primarily

ful andencouraging knowledge that rather less than one-fourth of the remainder of the Regiment subscribe to the maintenance of its own—its very own—Regimental chronicle The price charged (four annas) is, it will be agreed, a very moderate one, and it may not be generally known that the actual cost of pro duction works out to more than this sum per

copy.

the chronicling and placing on record of all

occurrences, professional, social and sporting, in connection with the regiment, and the hope was expressed that all ranks would combine

to make it readable and interesting, by con. tributing to its columns. For the ﬁrst two or three months we were inundated with contri—

butions, and copies sold like wildﬁre

Then, with the exception of one or two oﬁicers who were kind enough to come along from time to time with news and articles, the

contributions ceased, and the inexperienced staff were hard put to it to provide copy for the monthly issues

It is far from pleasant to have to place these facts upon record, but we venture to do so. in the hope that they will bring home to those concerned the necessity for assisting an institution that they themselves have admitted is, in every way, an excellent one. Before leaving the subject, the Editor begs to thank all those Royals, past and present, who have at various times throughout the year sent interesting articles and it:ms of news, and he trusts that many more may fol— low their very admirable example,

This was bad enough, but in

a comparatively short time it was discovered

that not only had the contributions but also, and, what was

ceased,

worse, there

was a

serious falling off in the subscriptions. It is true that each mail from home brought us new subscribers, but these were considerably more than counterbalanced by the rapid decrease in sales in the regiment This state of affairs. we regret to say, still exiStS, and unless there is an improvement, not only

will it be impossible to

make the

We can be said to be quite settled in our new station now. Indeed, we are so busy that we have hardly had time to realise, we are in a new station. The busy times are necessita» ted by the coming of the Inspector-General of Cavalry, who is due to inspect the Regiment on 14th, 15th and 16th instants. He will be accompanied by the General Commanding the Meerut Cavalry Brigade, to which brigade we belong. Even after the inspection we shall not be idle, for early in January we

paper 3, march to Gurgaon, near Delhi, to take part in

better

and

readable

production,

but

a big Cavalry Concentration.

THE

EA C DE

l1tV3 a fur ther addition to the Oﬂicers’ Mess in Mr. A. W. Waterhouse, who lately

fioined us on first appointment, from the Royal Military College. Theladies present in the station are Mrs. Makins, Mrs Steele, Mrs. McNeile, and Mrs. Jones. Preparations for the Squadron Christmas dinners and festivities are in hand, and we hope to spend quitea gay time, in spite of the stress of work. Christmas week is also Race Week in Calcutta, and several officers are hoping to put inafew days in the capital. lm mediately following the breaking up of the Concentration camp at the end of January, will be the Civil Service Week in Lucknow, when as many as can get away will paya return Visit to our late station. February should witness our annual Assault-at-Arms, after which there will be little else to look forward to, except our first hot weather in Muttra, that is to say. all of us who are not fortunate enough to be going home on leave Several officers are arranging to spend the first leave in England, and quite alarge number of non-commissioned officers are

applying for furlough under the existing

179

. The important event to us was, of course, the race for the Army Cup, in which the Regiment was represented by Captain Tomkinson riding his own horse, the Munshi, Mr.

ment, and the boxing tournament have been

very large, and the number of visitors from out-stations has been far in excess of that of previous years. Although the betting on the Army Cup did not show any great activity until a few days before the race, the chances of the various candidates have been the subject of a good deal of speculation for some

time past.

First The Munshi found favour,

and for along time he was given about as a certainty. Then came Little Ofﬁcer, who,

although he was one of the ﬁnal entries, had been much talked of before his name appeared in the lists. Nagashi was also handed out as agood selection, although

it was obvious

that his two wins at Poona put him out of the race altogether

regulations which grant six months” leave, with free passage, to all non-commissioned officers who have completed six years abroad, or five years in ludia, and have not leSs than two years to complete on their return The leave is, of course, subject to the CommandingOfﬁcer’sapproval,andprovided there

Char-

rington on L'aptain Gibbs’ Poniard, and Mr. Miles, who rode Mr. Thompson’s The Monster. We cannot do better than quote the following from The Asian of November 27th :— “The Army Cup Week at Lucknow has proved one of the most successful ‘weeks’ held at that station for many years past. The attendances at the races, the polo tourna—

Then came Pasha,

chance on the day was considered none.

whose

second to

Lastly, Poniard came well up in the

betting, and he

shared

second favouritism

with The Munshi at the start. On the day previous, however, 4 to 1 against him was to be obtained in Calcutta for a place, while 16 to 1 represented his price for a win, At the last

are vacant berths on the troopships.

also will there oe the probability that its con

moment Mauser and Highborn were scratchtinuance will have to be seriously considered, There is no getting away from the fact that the remissness lies with the rank and ﬁle below the rank of sergeant. Eg'nry'Qﬂ-jger is a

At present hard work is the order of the day, and squadrons are out daily until a late hourundergoing training, while twice weekly Regimental parades are held. With the exception of Major Evelyn Wood,

subscriberend ithas been ascertained that all

who is appointed to the general staff of the

the members of the Sergezmts’ Mess take one or more copies each. Deductingthenecessary ﬁgures from the average number of copies

London Territorials, and Captains Sand bach and Tidswell, and Mr‘ Houstoun, who are on

sold each month, we are left with the cheer.

leavein England, all officers are present at: head-quarters. ‘

As we noted in our last number, most of the ofﬁcers, and several non-commissioned

ofﬁcers and men, were able to Visit Lucknow during Army Cup Week, which was held from 16th to the 24th of November.

In addition to the races, and the polo and boxing tournaments, several dances were

ed,and eventuallyPasha started favourite with

The Munshi and Poniard next in demand On last year’s form it was difﬁcult to pass over

The Munshi, but Poniard’s performances at Simla in June last, with Mr. Charrington up, marked him as distinctly dangerous The race, says a correspondent, was a ﬁne sight,

held, and the Army Ballat the Chutter Munzil

There were no very interesting developments

was a great success.

until quite near home, when those who had

’1‘ H. E

THE EAGLE

180

backed Little Oﬁicer were delighted to see the little one forge to the front. Their joy was shortlived, for soon after Poniard and

The Munshi came with strong runs and Poniard won. Mr. Charrington is the second officer of the Royal Dragoons‘ who has ridden the wmner of this race. The win was a very popular one." “The Army 011p —Value Rs, 3,000 to the Winner, Rs. 800 to the second, and Rs. 400 to the third. For Arab ponies ,14-1 and under, which have

Our heartiest congratulations to M r. Charrington on his win. At the same time we condole with Captain Tomkinson in failing to make a double success This is the latter

ofﬁcer's second success in the Army Cup, he having won the race on Woordie Major three years ago. Next year we hope to see both winning horse and rider, come from the

Regiment. The following other successes came to the Regiment during the meeting :—

200 or over,

Welter Horse Handicap—Distancesfur-longs.

and which are b0 ii We and unconditionally

Mr. Miles’ Mademoiselle Genee ..8rd The Arab Handicap—Distance, 1,000 yards. Captain Grant’s Little Exile ..2nd {lite Des-err Handicap.—Distance, 1:} miles.

never won a ﬂat race, value Rs.

the property of Ofﬁcers in His Majesty’s Army on full pay, and which have been the property of a person entitled to enter since 1st May, 1909. To be ridden by gentlemen riders qualiﬁed to enter or licensed jockeys. Licensed jockeys to carry 10le ext 'a. 14 llb to carry 12 stone, W. I. When the W. l. is 10 st. or over, no licensed jockey is allowed. Distance, '7 furlongs. Ca pt. Evelyn Gihbs’ Poniard.10$t10ler.Chnrrinutou ‘ Touikiuson‘s The Muushi. . 0 w n or Inst 15“) Hodgsou‘s Little Ollicer, est

1211)

Mr, Char-ring.

ton .. .. ..3rd (Captain Tom kinson's The M nnshi, Owner 4th.; Closed Chase—Distance about 2‘ miles.

our

intention

spirit of discontent. thought that by

On the

belittling

our

inculcate

contrary, new

station

at one of the fences.)

ng the attractions by thus pavi

The former

be found elsewhere in this number.

it was never

fell. giving his rider, Mr. Charrington, a nasty shaking, and the latter ran out 1h? mind, Fina—Distance, 1 mile Captain Grants and Mr. Tidswell’s Vancouver .. .. ..8rd 2115 Formal! Plan: —- Distance, ti furlongs Mr. Miles‘ White Heather Owner ,Srd An account of the Polo Tournament will

Betting : 4 to 1 agamst The Munshi and Poniaid ; 6 to 1 Pasha. 7 to 1 Young Lomond; 8to 1 Sirdar ; 10 to l Surrender and Little Ofﬁcer ; any price the others. Won by three—quarters of a length, One Close length between second and third ' fourth.”

readers to We would draw the attention of er. We numb this in r lette Major Steele’s severon ng do not (indeed, cannot) deny havi bed ” crab “ mns, al occasions, in these colu out t poin d woul we but on, Muttra as a stati general the e voic to is duty n our ster gs of our opinion, and in saying harsh thin , but the ined imag we , were new station, we any case In e. itud mult the of ce mouthpie

it all the better before hand, we should like lly the case, actua is as when we discovered, attractions more y man d esse that it poss thought even We than we had supposed, ra’s Mutt to ng addi in ourselves quite clever

Mr. Miles‘ Idle, Owner .. .,8rd (Mr. Miles" Senator, and M1. Cosons’ Uinut bee also ran in this race.

\Viiany

G. R. H. Cheape‘s Surrender, list. ill) Major 'l'udor Mr Ruke's Egypt. llst llh .. .. Mr. irluth‘r Capt.'l‘oogood'.~‘ and M" Evans7 Youn LO'noml. list th Captain Barrett Capt. Watkin \Villiams' i'asha. ilst Ell) Owner Mr. Kennedy's Express. list Z‘h Mr. Jackson Capt. D. Wood’s Rock Salt 10st 1'3lh Mr Plat! Capt. L‘ell’s Orion, inst Tlh (zwn or Mr. E. Supper’s Caravan. lost 41h.... Owner Capt. Leakn and Furnell‘s Sirdar. 10st 4lh Capt. 1"ururAll Mr. Thompson‘s The Monster, lflst Mr. Miles “ Lee’s Veto. ins: 21b Bond “ Johnston Stewart’s Moulood. numb Thomas

Captain Gibbs’ Poniard.

Panigaon and Koila have various kinds. good bags of duck, some d provide both whilst a good many snipe have been killed. Several. non-commissioned ofﬁcers and men s, have taken advantage of the shooting facilitie and quite buck few A . success varying with Duck a number of hares have been bagged y probabl l, plentifu proved have not, so far, guns. of parties small the owing to

With regard to sport locally, pig~sticking has not yet been taken very seriously. The. Tent Club has. had several meets, but pig are diﬁicult to ﬁnd at this time of the year, and the crops being high, most of the countUp to date 3 pigs have ry is unrideable,

been killed, the ﬁrst pig of the season falling Our Congra— to Mr, Gough, riding a pony_ ofﬁcer. that tulations to There has been a good deal of shooting 0f

way

for

13113

surprise. element of pleasurable icated ourAnd now that we have vind ts in Major poin r othe the to selves, let us refer acsence the to Steele’s letter. With regard we matter of ol‘ outside, teams in the

sport.

number that this pointed out in a recent making inter-squadshould have the effect of more frequent and ron and troop contests ous result of proobvi the more keen, with of: skill in the ducing a higher standard Regiment. to say that we fully lt is scarcely necessary rks upon the rema e’s Steel r endorse Majo of the men in Games, lack of personal interest own comfort. Few and in the matter of their s and institutes club their seem to care how or so it would appear, are conducted, and are,

181

EAGLE perfectly indifferent to

any

We dislike writing of these

improvement.

things,

but the

erunvarnished truth must be told if we areto Year New the that hope us adicate this evil. Let of our and our new station will witness none we shall old lackadaisical manner, and that and insucceed in making ourselves happier, toosay, to re ventu we not, our g maintainin soldiering, insigniticant reputation as a good good sporting corps. ingin Messrs. Irwin and Edwardes, shoot Kashmir, spent the

period, 15th

September

pur district. to end of October, in the Bandi their bags :— of best the were wing follo The head of 10 Mr. lrwin : 1 barasingh (a fair . serow l. and bear, points). 1 black and l sharMr. Edwardes '. 2 1bex, i bear, . poo. tions to the We have to offer our congratula The follow— former ofﬁcer on his engagement ng [‘ostzr—» ing is taken from the Morni l‘homas

of 1‘ The engagement is announced Strutb Irwin. the Royal Dragoons, eldest son of Lynehow, Carof Colonel and Mrs. lrwin, est daughter young . Willis rie lisle. and Marjo of Lewes” of Mr. and Mrs, Dyson Lacy, been kind correspondents have Several ts of the third annual oun acc us d sen to ugh eno recently in London, Old Gomrades‘ Dinner held alistof names with er eth tog and a full report. he published in our of those attending, will letters received the g3. next nu in her, From the been a most successful e hav to s ear app g therin it as

ts speak of one as our corresponden ; jolllest eveningr I “the night of my life," “tlr There can be no have ever spent,” etc. nion is a popular doubt that the annual re-u all Royals is due

thanks of institution. and the non-commissioned to the old officers and e to

h of their tim ofﬁcers who devote so muc ' s organisation. let the Memorial Tab It We? hear also that iled in St, unve ly mer for be ly will probab likely on the day of Paul‘s in J one next, most many Royals as As the ot'ﬁcers' dinner.

to be present possible should make an effort.ies partlcularly appl this and g, ilin the unve

at ough. We underto those going home on furl through the

en stand due notice will be giv agency of the press.

18:?

THE

EAGLE

THE EAGLE

HISTORICAL RECORD Of the First or the Royal Regiment of Dragoons, contain-

ing an account of its formation in the reign of King Charles the Second, and of its subsequent services to the present time. By General C. P. de Ainslie.

(Continued) The Crimea.

Captain

Campbell, Lieutenant

Adjutant Webster, Cornet Wartopp, Veterinary-Surgeon Post, seven sergeants. one trumpeter, two farriers, one hundred and sixteen rank and ﬁle, four women, sixteen oliicers' horses, hundred and thirteen troop horses. The Arabm. reached Varna on the 7th, and the Hip van Winkle on the 14th of

July, and joined the head-quarters in camp, In view of the impending war with Russia to be proclaimed by England and France in support of Turkey, and in the interest of the balance of power in Europe, the Royal Regi ment of Dragoons was ordered to hold itself in readiness for immediate service in the East, the scene of eXpected operations being the Crimea, and in consequence, on the 30th March, 1854, the Regiment concentrated at Manchester, for the purpose of organising the service and depot troops, which was eifected without calling for either man or

horses, forty-one troop horses, and landed at Varna on the 10th of July, where it was found that glanders had broken out among the horses, caused by the imperfect ventilation of the vessel. These horses were immediately encamped by themselves on the

horse from any other corps.

heights above the Bay of Varna,

War being declared on the 27th of March, on the 9th of May the head-quarters left Manchester on the following day, embarked at Liverpool in two transports, Ihe thrude and the Peruvian. On board the former were Lieu— tenant-ColonelYorke, Lieutenant Coney, Cor-

subsequently found necessary to destroy twentyﬁve of them The fourth and last detachment, embarking at Liverpool on the 30th of May on board the

net Robertson, Surgeon Barron, three sen geants, one trumpeter, one farrier, ﬁfty rank

and ﬁle, two women, nine oﬁicers’ horses,

On the 28th of the same month, a third detachment embarked at Liverpool, under Captain Storks, in the transport Coronettu, comprising Lieutenant Pepys, Quartermaster Scott. one sergeant, one trumpeter, one fare rier, forty~eight rank and file, seven ofﬁcers“

transport Conrad,

under the

and it was

By authority, dated “War Ofﬁce, 13th of June, 1854,” the Regiment was increased to the following strength from the l0th of May prev10us :— 4 Service Troops .. 42

thirtynine troop horses. After a tedious pas.

2 Depot Troons

consisted of the 4th and 5th Dragoon Guards,

with the Royal and Inniskilling Dragoons. In the course of the month a remount of thirty— siX horses joined the regiment.

whence it

On the 7th of September, the combined

subsequently rejoined the troop at Devna on the nth of July. On the 10th of July a detachment under Major Wardlaw left Varna for Devna, being followed on the 17th by the head-quarters of the regiment, which then was brigaded with the 5th Dragoon Guards under BrigadierGeneral the Honourable J. Y. Scarlett; but choiera having appeared in that regiment, as well as in the Light Infantry Division encamped on the other side of the plain, it was considered advisable to break up the general encampment, and on the 29th of July the Royal Dragoons moved to Karra. On the

British and French expeditions sailed from the Bays of Varna and Baltchik for the Crimea, the Light Cavalry only accompanying

directed

to proceed to Shumla,

3rd of August, however, occurred the first

fatal case of cholera. followed on the 8th and 9th by the death of ﬁve men and one woman, when the camp being immediately changed to the proximity of the village, the disease disappeared. having

occurred at Varna,

which

forty-ﬁve troop horses ; in the Perm-mu, Cap.

destroyed the chief part of the com missariat

stores of barley, the Royal Dragoons received no forage of any description from the commissmriat for several days, and with difﬁculty procured a few loads of grass and sheaf

the

British

force.

The

Heavy

Cavalry

followed on the 24th, the head-quarters of the Royal Dragoons under Lieutenant Colonel Yorke sailing on the 25th in the transport 1311) can ll’iinlrle, with Captain Campbell,

Cor-

net Hartopp, ﬁve sergeants, one trumpeter,

one farrier, fiftyeigbt rank and file, one woman, eight officers’ chargers. and sixty-one troop horses. Major Wardlaw, Captain Storks, Lieutenants Charlton and Pepys, Cornets Robertson

and Sandeman, Veterinary—Surgeon Post, ten sergeants, two trumpeters, one farrier, eighty-eight

rank

and

ﬁle,

one

woman,

eighteen officer-5' chargers. and ninety-two trhop horses embarked in the Wilson Kennedy. Captain Elmsall, with Captain Sykes, Lieutenanls Coney and Barrett, Cornet Glyn, Assistant Surgeon Gorringe, Quartermaster Scott, tight sergeants.

one trumpeter, one

faryiei‘, eighty-one rank and file, five women, fifteen ol'ticers' chargers. and eighty-tw~ troop horses, embarked in the Prideof the Ocean. The transports,

barley from the villagers.

Leaving Karra Pass on the 16th of August, the Royals rejoined the 5th Dragoon Guards,

towed by steamers, sailed under Convoy of H. M. steamer .S'pz‘fviul; but

they had scarcely left the harbour, when a tremendous storm came on, the hawsers par

Sergeant-s. li‘zirriers. Corporals. Privates. Horses .. 1:2

Establishment . , 54

261

.350

144

7,,

40,-,

3:3,

Varna on the 28th of June, and encamped at the head of Varna Bay.

On the 80th of July, a troop under the com— mand of Captain Elmsall received orders to

Asecond detachment embarked at Liver-

march to Devna, and thence to detach a party

pool on the 20th of May in the transports

of one sergeant and eight privates. under Cornet Glyn, for the purpose of forage to the Light Cavalry Brigade. which. com manded by Brigadier General the Earl of Cardigan:

Arabia and Rip van Winkle, under the command of Major Wardlaw, and was composed as follows :—

had pushed on towards the Danube, in order to reconnoitre the position of the enemy. This escort overtook the Light Brigade about thirty miles from the Danube, and was then

A ﬁre

command

Captain Sykes, consisted of Lieutenant Basset, two sergeants, ﬁfteen rank and file, the oﬁicers’ horses, ten troop horses, and landed at Varna on the 14th of July.

tain Elmsall, Cornet Glyn, Cornet Sandman, Assistant Surgeon Gorringe, four sergeants, one trumpeter, one farrier, forty-three rank and ﬁle, two women, eight olﬁcers’ horses, and sage this portio of the regiment landed at

183

Charlton,

and, under the command of Brigadier~Gener~

althc Honourable J. Y. Scarlett, encainped

ted, and ll‘ie HUI-sou Kennedy was driven down

in the evening about three miles from Devna, the horses having been without food the whole day. A foraging party returned at

to the Hosphoms, losing ninety-nine omcers

and troop horses

The Rip

van Winklelost

fortv-three. and the Pride or (he (Inca/7 elght.

The” ll'ffxon Kennedy landed eleven night on the following day,

the

horses

Vregiment

encamped at night near the lake of Carna, the horses receiving a sheaf of barley each. During the night a dragoon died of cholera On the following morning the regiment proceeded to the heights near the Adrianopolis road, and joined the brigade, which now

saved at snow/1 where the oﬂicers and men

were mansshipped to the Cambriu, and landed at Balaclava, in the Crimea. on the 4th 0f 00 tober, 'l‘he head-quarters disembarked on the day following, when the regiment encampv ed with the cavalry division, commanded by

184

THE

EAGLE THE

LieutenantGeneral the Earl of Luean, on the

plain of Balaclava, where the Heavy Brigade was increased by The Scots Greys. Marshal St. Arnaud, Commander-in-Chief

drawn blan k. Another party had better luck, they “found ” all right and nearly effected a complete surprise, how nearly can be judged from the fact that the Boers escaped bare-

of the French Army, dying of cholera 011 the

backed, leaving their saddles, food, and many

29th of September, 1854, was succeeded by Marshal Canrobert. On the 18th of October, the regiment

articles of clothing behind. Six of the enemy being “ late on parade” were captured.

received seventy-ﬁve horses from the Light

On the 19th, the cavalry encampment

and were glad to be on the move again for “fresh ﬁelds and pastures new.” Lichten stein had been our headquarters for two months ; we were tired of it and the surround ing country, moreover, fever had broken out amongst the young soldiers recently out from home. The serious cases were sent to the Boer

Brigade. The cavalry

division,

turning

out

every

morning before daylight, was kept continually on the alert by the frequent demonstrations of

the

Russians

the

Tchernaya Valley and name.

direction

the village

the

that

We left Lichtenstein on the 14th instant,

right

hospital at Wessels Rust (a farm a few miles

resting on the road to Sevastopol, and here also the troops continued to be harassed by the enemy. being in constant- readiness to

distant). where they received every attention5 indeed they could not have found kinder nurses, even had they been at home, than the

turn out, and upon one occasion they remain— ed the whole night under arm 3. (To be continued.)

Burghers’ wives and daughters, who formed

was shifted higher up

the plain,

the

SOUTH AFRICAN LETTERS. SPITZKOP,

Near B‘iCKsBURG, O. R. 0., December 31.91. 190]. DEAR M5

The ﬁrst half of this

month was remark-

able for night marches, thunderstorms and swarms of locusts; clouds of the latter swept through the district and in few hours, changed the iace of the earth from green to brown. At a distance they look like immense clouds

of dust drifting along, and at close quarters are as thick as snowﬂakes in a heavy snowstorm. I believe they are considered a delicacy by them Bushmen, but so far, we have not added the into our menu. My squadron was out for three days and

nights looking for Commandant Brand, who was reported to have crossed the railway near Edenburg. We returned to camp on the 9th, having

the hospital staff. It is entirely due to the care and devotion of these noble women, who, it must be remembered, had relatives fighting against us, that our fever-stricken men recovered their health and strength.

Only two cases proved fatal, and the Boer nurses not only sent wreaths but also at_ tended the simple funerals that fall to the lot of soldiers on active service. One of these ladies Was the wife of Veldt-Cornet Wolman ans, who was taken prisoner by us last month. Another lady was a relative of Commandant Joubert, wounded and taken with Wolmarans. Still another lady who shares with Mrs. Wolmarans and Miss Joubert, our admiration and gratitude, is Miss Vander Merwe, the daughter, I believe, of the Commandant of that

name. it was rumoured on the 18th instant, that DeWet with 3,000 men hid driven in two columns near Lindley.

We struck camp at 8-30 A.M. on the 14th and marched north to Springhaan Nek,

Thaba’-

Ncbu (a big black mountain about half-way between Bloemfontein and Ladybrand), an riving on the 19th, having captured a. patro1 of four Boers en route. Here, we received a convoy of supplies and remounts, my troop being allotted eighteen, all Russians, small but hardy-looking horses. We marched again at 5 A.M. on the 28rd through arugged and picturesque country to Ladybrand, where we arrived on Christmas eve.

Marched at 5 AM. on Christmas morning7 my troop being right flanking patrol. We had a very rough ride, over a succession of rocky ridges, covered with bush and loose stones. The farms we passed bore evidence of recent occupation, and we came through several standing crops of oats and mealies in the valleys, where the soil appeared to be ex— cellent. About thirty of the enemy were seen on the left liank when the column was outspanned at noon. Two troops went out and the enemy

EAGLE

185

However, if they came, I guess they were a bit late. On the 27th we were joined by ’Fernan’s column (Thorneycoft‘s M. I.) and marched here to Spitzkop. About 300 Boers were seen, and six were captured, who stated that De~ Wet was in the vicinity and was going to attack. Information that the Boers were con. centrating in our immediate neighbourhood camein from several sources and sangars (breastworks of stone)

camp enclosed with

were

built and

the

barbed wire entangle-

merits.

I was out yesterday with my troop, cover ing woodcut-tars onaridge a few miles from

camp, and have been out to day with the squadron to meet a convoy from Ficksburg, which brought the news that DeWet had scuppered a column Boers

near Bethlehem.

The

surprised the camp at night, killed

We bivouacked in the evening near

119, and captured 700, two guns and a pom-pom. It was a Yeomanry column. *No doubt DeWet would have attacked us on the

a big hill called Clocolan, and as my troop had

27th, and 28th, if there had been any prospects

bagged two turkeys and a dozen fowls, we had

of success, but I am conﬁdent he will not catch the Royals asleep. Yours, etc., OL.-OL

retired.

avery decent Christmas dinner, supplemented by apound of plum-pudding per man (Crosse and Blackwell’s tinned species), presented by the Field Force Canteen.

Some of the

men!

unable to resist the temptation ate it cold as a preliminary course, and subsequently worea worried look. Fancy a solid pound of cold pudding on an empty stomach! On Boxing day, my squadron turned out atb A.M. and went out klooi‘ and farm searching. We came across large quantities of cloth-

ing, furniture, tools, etc, in caves, and some gape carts submerged in a spruit. Several farms were occupied by women and children, and evidently by the condition of the larder, had recently been enter. taining a number of guests. One farm contained alarge quantity of newly-baked bread, and the lady of the house frankly stated it was for a commando expected that day.

HORSE MANAGEMENT IN INDIA. BY 00L. H. n. n B. DE LISLE, 0.8., D, S. 0, (Concluded) ' EXERCISE AND WORK. However careful an owner may be with regard to stable management, feeding, and grooming, he will probably fail to achieve complete success with his stable, unless he understands the principles which govern exercise and work. It is no unusual occurrence for men in India to spend their leisure in muscular exertion daily in order to keep ﬁt, but who never think of giving their * Our correspondent refers evidently to the Tweefontein atl‘air.- Editor.

186

THE EAGLE

horses regular work, or even the minimum requirement of exercise.

THE

grass and lucerne as

they can eat,

'much they could eat.

At ﬁrst most of them

and a

miid allowance of half bran and crushed oats.

ate 18105. and some as much as 25le. After

I propose to discuss this question in rela«

with boiled barley, motee or kooltliie added-

a few days, 161bs. was the average. The same

tion to feeding. because it must be remembered that to get the work of a race—horse from an animal, he must be fed like a race— horse: but to feed a horse like a race-horse, and to give him only the exercise of a back is to sow the seeds of liver or bilious fever. If we begin with the horse in a state of nature, we ﬁnd him thriving and looking splendid on nothing but green grass. To attempt to hunt or even back a horse on grass

The exercise during this period must be restricted to walking in hand and occasional ]ougeiug to open thelungs without causi ng them to sweat. ‘As soon as the coat looks bright and healthy, and the ribs and hips are covered, tinhorse must be gently worked, in addition to exercise. 1 must here explain that exerc ise is meant to include walking in hand or beina

horses, during the rains, and getting 'trdt:

only would reduce him to the proﬁle of a greyhound. All kinds of work. as well as all kinds of corn, are unnatural for

a horse,

but to enable them to work they must have corn. We have, therefore. to learn how much corn is required to maintain a horse in sufﬁcient muscle to perform the kind of work he is intended for. Secondly, we must learn what is the minimum exercise and work

necessary for a horse in muscle. consuming a certain allowance of corn to keep him ﬁt. We have already seen that to bring a horse into big condition, which is the sign of health, easily digested food and mild exercise is necessary. To change a fat to a muscular condition, soft food must be replaced by solid food, but the muscles must at the same time be severely exercised. To render the same animal ﬁt to carry a man at a fast pace, long trotting and slow galloping work must be given, with occasional fast gallops to train the heart and lungs as well as the ligaments and tendons to stand the strain. When

ample, ponies should have at least a week’s rest on slops on walking exercise. Similarly troop horses after the annual manoeuvres should get a fortnight’s “letting down.” This

kinds of muscle-forming exercise, such as trotting, slow galloping, and fast work. It is at this stage that beginners make such

land.

In calculating the feeds this principle

require after a severe preparation, and refers to the bellies, which are reduced to a mini-

no corn,”

mum for racing; but which must be allowed

fatal mistakes.

Thus a horse laid up and unable to get even walking exercise should get Gibs. of bran

to resume normal proportions from time to time, to avoid the risk of the horses becoming “ overmarked” or stale. To reduce the foregoing to practical instruction, we must divide the state of all horses

ridden at a walk.

work I include

A horse in fat condition,

usually termed “ dealer’s condition, " is unﬁt for anything but the mildest exercise, and until he can carry a man for two hours hack-

ing at a walk, he is unfit for work.

To gallop

or even trot, afat horse. which has never been in muscle, is to run the risk of internal strain which may ruin the horse for life. This is the explanation why the majority of fat ponies, purchased from Afghan dealers, IOse their sound appearance at once and can never again recover their fat condition. The overstrain to the heart and lungs has alter< ed their looks from that of a pug cog to that of a greyhound When two hours’ exercise mounted does not distress a fat horse, it is time to increase his corn and work. A mile trotting daily, increasing gradually to three miles after aboutafortiiight, will require a similar in—

al increase of speed at the end of the work. A month of this galloping work should bring a horse to the highest scale of food given on

much green

term

is the

usual expression

training

stables for the periodical rests, race-horses

all

Having considered generalities, we now have to apply them to individual cases. In India most of the horses are imported and arrive in poor condition, usually un« healthy and very weak. Such animals must be fed on what trainers term " slops.” This means easily digested food : as

scale of feeds for a 14-1 animal when, on slops,

and when in work.

many race-horses are lost annually owing to this alone. After a severe physical course of training, rest is required for brain and muscle. Similarly during and after a course of high feeding, the digestive powers want periodical rests. After a, polo tournament, for ex-

The art of the horse;

crease of solid food. As soon as the ho se is in good hard condition, he is ﬁt for galloping. At ﬁrst this work should be given at half

short. fit

187

master is to estimate the requirements of each horse according to the work he has to perform, his state of condition, and his ago. An old horse requires more food of a sustaining nature, such as gram, or peas in Eng-

to race, he can be kept fit with little trouble, provided he is judiciously worked and fed.

once a horse has been in muscle, in

ting work 'only, averaged under 12lbs.

a previous chapter I have given the average

EAGLE

pace, ﬁfteen miles an hour, with an occasion—

page 187. It will then be discovered how much solid food each horse will eat. I have tested a whole squadron of 140 horses to see how

should be recognised, “ no work,

and no corn. If led in hand, only 21bs. of oats

may be added, and if ridden tOIexercise, 4le. When the corn is cut the grass ration must be increased, even up to 5Ole. 3. day. It is well to remember that with the exception of exhorses in training for races and a few gross, very become which horses ceptional grass horses in India should be given as much trainin horse A eat. to care or hay as they horse ing will not eat lﬂlbs. but the same supply limited a when “let down,” and having

and ponies in classes as

‘3.

of work, Whenever horses are thrown out must be cut. For even temporarily, the corn

and others not working on Sundays should on baturday cret '24 hours of bran from 6 RM. only is this :ioht to 6 RM. on Sunday. Not is also most it but clfange of food economical, organs. digestive the to beneficial as arest a week Owners going on short absences .of

instructicgn or ten days should either leave or else putit te regarding the daily work, c: solid fooc give To slops. on whole stable mosd the is work horses thrown out of fast bilious fever, an fruitful cause in India of

work and

Feel on slops with as Horses in poor condition and those thrown out of much green grass as they work for rest or other can eat anda liberal allowance of lucerne. cause. exercise only.

grass daily. of oats, will eat QSlbs. to 40 lbs. of

do not leave the example, troop horses which should be bundays and lines on Thursdays ponies Polo fed on bran during these days.

regards

feeding :

Feed on solid food and Horses En half work, such ample grass. The amount as hacks, and hunters and polo ponies not in of corn to be regulated by s’ the requirements of each training. Two hour animal. exercise or slow work in addition to riding or driving. As much solid food, oats, for Horses in training and a small proportion of hunting, polo tiuriiaracmg. gram or parched barley as or m e n t they can eat. Grass re— \Vork once a day and stricted only if animal is exerciSc once a day. gross and does not reduce naturally.

I am quite aware that it is not customary

in India to put hunters and polo‘,ponies into In training as is always done in England. get playing fast polo India, the work they

three three times a week and hunting two or times a weel r, puts them into fair training It is to automatically, or breaks them down.

188

THE

improve their condition and to avoid the large proportion of break-downs we see in this country that I lay such stress on the importance of training. It is no unusual thing to see valuable polo studs which never get any work, except on the polo ground, and which, on off days, are led in hand by syces for

short periods.

If these ponies were trotted

three or foui miles daily, in addition to the 15 minutes' polo they get three times a week, they would not only be easier to play in the game, but being ﬁt would break down or lose condition much more seldom. I consider two hours‘ exercise and slow work daily is the minimum that horses and

ponies require to keep them ﬁt, and this Leading in exercise should be mounted. hand is only suitable for horses out of condi~ tion, for restadays (Sundays), and for race» horses for whom work once a day is enough. The estimate of work and feeding can only be thoroughly learnt by experience, but I hope the hints contained in this article will serve asa guide and enable my readers to acquire the art of training their animals

without the losses which such experience is liable to cost. Attention to the principles of stable management, feeding, and work, constitutes the art of the horse-master. The result is ahealthy and happy stable and a very economical change in the cost of their maintenance.

,EAGr L E

THE EAGLE

described simply as the King of Dwaraka, and which recounts his deeds of daring and of war. All the mass of legendary matter which surrounds his life, making it so diﬂicult to sift the doubtful from the true, ﬁnds men~ tion in another poem, the “Harivansa, ”a comparatively modern work to the “Mahabharat, ” and in some of the “ Puranas, " which last are said to be as old as the {with century

after

(.v‘ll7‘r’SC.

would

Call

particular attention to this fact, becauseit has been urged that the life of Christ as described in the New Testament, is very much like that of Krishna. There have been many who go the length of saying that our New Testament with its sacred slory of the murder of lhe innocents is but a copy of the murder of innocents by Kansa at the time of Krishna's birth, and such writers have taken other similar circumstances in both lives, at lowing for diifereiices caused by environment, to dispute the Divinity of Christ lain not inclined to make these articles pro-Christian in any way ; my purpose being to place before you all that is Worth knowing of this city and the district. but it is necessary to tell you of these arguments in order

allow

make this simple deduction :

you

The newer

8 DE B. DE L. MUTTRA. Muttra is probably most famous as the birthplace of Krishna, the alleged incarnation of the Deity. It behoves us, therefore, before we go on with a. description of the more notable places of the district, to know something of the life of this demigod. Krishna is ﬁrst mentioned in the "' Mahabharat,” an epic poem of 91,000 couplets, in which he is

the great Jadav clan settled on the banks of the Jumna, and founded the Kingdom of Braj, making .Vluttra the capital of the king dom. At the time of Krishna’s birth the rightful king, Ugrasen, had been deposed by

So rapid has been the development of the original idea when once planted in the con-

Krishna, a cousin of Kansa

who had been brought up as a cowherd, raised the standard of revolt, and slaying Kansa, restored Ugrasen to the throne. Now Kansa’s wife was the daughterof Jai'asandha, Kingof Magadha, Ugrasen was no sooner restored than Jarztsandlia, getting aid from a another powerful king “from the west " (conjectured to be the King of Kashmir) laid siege to M uttra, and Krishna retreated as fir away as the Bay of Kaciili on the coast of lndia above Bombay, and there founded the city of Dwaraka, which is now ’out a name, it having been destroyed by the inundations While Kingr of Dwaraka, Krishna of the sea had again occasion to return to these parts of lndia, for, in a great war among different

princes for the throne of Delhi, Krishna allied himself to the Pandav princes, who were his maternal cousins, and was the

mainspring of the successes of these relations throughout the

war.

While

marching

their help Krishna paid off old scores by through making a most circuitous journey

gospels of the life of Christ immediately

Magadha, whom be slow, and whose town he ‘ sacked. ’l‘his, brieﬂy, is the story of the warrior Krishna as related in the “Maliabharat,’ wherein he is lauded as the King of Dwaralra, and the ally of the Paudavs, no mention occurring of his early life, and no claim whatever being made to his divine origin

rical fact that the East was the scene of their labours more than the distant and unknown West. What more natural, then, than the concusion that the story of Christ's birth and death had ﬁltered into India, and had become the copy of the life of Krishna? But to return to our subject. 1 must tell you that the authority for all I write upon is Mr. Growse, late of the Indian Civil Service, and for alongr time Collector and Magistrate of Muttra, who has both a Western and Eastern

reputation as a ripe Oriental scholar and. linguist.

he was celebrated as a gallant warrior prince ‘for many ages’ (‘Mahabharat ') into the before he was metamorphosed amatory swain who now, under the title of ‘Kanhiya" is worshipped throughout India.

his son Kansa.

book, if like an older book in detail, must be a copy of the older work. The apostles of Christ scattered over the earth wrote their after the Saviour’s death, and it is an histo-

* The training of horse.- to ii' them for Various kinds of work has been dealt \vitli in my ﬁlth-h). -. The tracing 7 of tin Remnunt“ (Mensrs. ’l‘liacaer & Cu , BombayL

li‘ar away in the dim past, it is alleged that

189

Til-hoot in Bengal on Jarasandha, King-Hg

the

“ l—larivansa ‘"

and “ Puranas " alone

we find all those legends,

miracles: and

sensuous exploits related upon which Krishe

iia‘s claim to deinigodship is based. Mr. Gr »wse sums up the questionhby say» ing, " Whether the‘above. narrative has any historical foundation, it is certain Krish-

genial soil of the sensuous East, that while in

none of the more genuine ‘Puranas ’is the name of Krishna's favourite mistress, Radha,

mentioned, she is now devoutly jointly entlironed with Krishna in every shrine, and claims a full half of popular devotion,” " SHAMUs. " HEAR BOTH SIDES. Dear Mr. Editor. You know it is said that once having given a dog a bad name you may as well hang it, Now isn’t this rather the policy you have been pursuing as regards Muttra? in your monthly notes ever since we were ordered to come here, you have systematically had something bad to say about the place, even though you had never set foot in it.

Let me ask you

a question . do you think a spirit of grumbling is a good one in which to arrive at a new station? I will grant you that it is an Englishman‘s prerogative to grumble, also that a soldier is rarely happy unless doing so, but I maintain that it is better to make the best of things wherever we are called upon to soldier. The chief thing you would claim for Lucknow as against Mutti'a is, I suppose, that in the former place you had society. But this affects the few, not the majority, as you yourself pointed out in an article some time ago. Now Muttra is of course a small and very quiet place, but is this agreat disadvan~ tage? It seems to me it (:Uts both ways. Here at least we are not overrun with Generals (no disrespect meant to a class with Here whom we have always got on well) also there are no garrison duties. Here we

have a tine Sporting district of which we practically have the monopoly. Here we have

190

THE

EAGLE

THEspace to properly train a Cavalry Regiment, and this is the ﬁrst station I have ever been in where one could say that.

Now in order to make the best of the place, what have we got at our disposal 2’ I. A good riﬂe range out of which we can get a good deal of interest, provided we once start a proper Regimental Riﬂe Club. Don’t

run away with the idea that Squadron riﬂe clubs will answer the same purpose, as they will not It is quite obv ous that if you have four squadrons, the Sergeants’ Mess, the Corporals’ Mess, and possibly the Band, each

with a club of its own, then shooting every day in the week, (which is impossible) each club would get one day per week. Or shooting on Thursdays only, one club would get one day in seven weeks!

On the

other hand

with a Regimental Club, there is more shoot-

ing, greater competition, easier classiﬁcation, more money and consequently better prizes, and a real good riﬂe meeting once a year. II. Games, such as football, hockey and cricket,

become

more inter-squadron than

they were at Lucknow, as there are no outsiders to compete with. This, however, may

would once more get started, would provide much pleasure for all. The purchase of a piano is being arranged for— The R A. T, A. and the canteen will probably both ﬂourish on their own merits, though I think the latter might be made more comfortable if suggestions were received from those that use it. I see no more reason for being uncomfo: table whilst drinking your beer, than whilst drinking your lemonade.

7 shutting up!“ “Like a telescope,‘ rapped the owner, and then with a resigned sigh she

selected the shade of a big tree, and settled down in the dust! Then the expert and amateur set their heads together, and after prolonged consulta. tion,{came to the conclusion that she was get. ting too much draught. Obviously then we must shorten that thing. And we did so. Away we went again, congratulating our.

1V.

Shooting. There is excellent shooting

around here, but certain places and things are barred, and so the shooting rules must be carefully studied. As each squadron has a copy, with a map showing the forbidden areas, there is no excuse for not knowing these rules. G. F. STEELE, Major.

HOW WE SPENT OUR HOLIDAY. “Will you come for a run into Agra tomor_ row in my new car? Of course she may re. quire a little adjusting on the way, as this is her maiden trip, but I except we'll get there all right.”

selves how quickly we had spotted what was wrong. Presently we glided into an impene. trable wall of dust, which we discovered to be the lowing herd winding slowly o’er the

road.

191

EAGLE

We threaded our way through this,

last inhaling tons of ﬁne white dust, and at the passed column, the of head the to not ! it was Ieading calf when—was it a sigh? Yes our old friend the “resigned sigh,” and in a few seconds all was over, and once more expert and amateur buried their heads in the to same bonnet. Meanwhile the cows began gomg in slower ever. were pass us, and they by than we had been. When the air cleared a little, and our With l'riends once more came into view still the that d discovere we together, heads their

This time the expert did a long overhauling, and his elforts were at length rewarded, as he suddenly emerged hot but determined, grasping a long twisty looking pipe, which he had wrenched away from somewhere in. side. This be sucked at for some time and seemed so pleased that he offered it to the owner, But master not liking petrol, declin. ed, and it was put back into position. Nothing else, however, happened. One of the passengers ’l think it was my wife) asked it in a timid voice, whether there was plenty of petrol. Of course such an ignorant remark was ignored,

but a little

later, as though it was their own idea, they looked into the tank 7 they put in a stick—— which came out dry I Now why is it that whenever petrol has to be transferred

from

the tin

funnel is never forthcoming?

to the tank, a

it is essential,

yet itis never carried. In the present instance the expert had to use his own hand as a funnel. We now did some

ﬁfteen

miles in such

style that we thought to make Agra without further adventure, but never count your hatched;

sure

act beneﬁcially, as there willnolonger remain the necessity for the best men to hide their best form in matches. The grounds seem to be in good order, or at any rate can easily be

at 8 A.M. on Thursday we were waiting when the car came silently up the drive. My wife

By a sudden brain wave, one of them remem~ that bered that last time they had shortened

First we had shortened that thing; next time

made so.

suggested some Plasmon biscuits and a Ther

lengthen thing wobviously it should have been

we lengthened

we ed. l’Iliis being only a matter of seconds, cows_ the after chase onastern off vere soon We gain; we are up to, we are through on, them again.~l—lurrahl Now we can get is speed our , increasing of instead But no, soon as we decreasing, and sure enough as

put it back to where it was before we touch ed it. The rest of our journey was uneventful until we reached the outskirts of (Ag-13,31;

One thing is, however, important

which is, that secretaries of squadron clubs should arrange their ﬁxtures so that they do

not clash with others, as it often happens that

We said we should be delighted, as we wanted to buy a few things, and accordingly

mos ﬂask, but her suggestion was treated with scorn. Fortunately we insisted on talking fur coats and a rug. We then started, and everything went

the best shot may be the best football or hockey player, and he cannot be in two places at once. III. Institutes. At present these are not

ing at Bad, where the gates were shut, There were two trains standing in the station a

very attractive, but a little whitewash will

quarter of a mile away, and apparently the

work wonders, and it is hoped they will soon be comfortable. The Institute garden is a very nice one, and when we get our big lamps up and have the band playing there once a. week, it should make a very good meeting place The Theatre has great possibilities about it, and if the Regimental Dramatic Club

drivers were old pals who had not metifor some time, as they had so much to say to each other that there we remained for half an hour. Did our engines catch cold then? Who can say ? Certainly we did not get much further on the road before the chauffeur said “She's

beautifully, until we reached the level cross-

draught. trouble was the same, 2' a, too much

found a good shady tree—“ She’s shutting up," "Like a telescope," resigned sigh-all the cows), all over same old things (including the ‘ . again. Were we downhearted?

No!

li‘or

didn't

stop the owner keep on telling us at each brother his as right, that he knew it was all Behad “got forty out of her in England." young. yet was day the sides

chickens

before

they are

enough we had one more stop. This time we

which

soon decided what to do_ it: so now naturally we must

point I undertook the guiding as

know the road. After an excellent run of about twenty minutes we arrived at a place we all recognised: the signpost on the Mnttra Road where we ﬁrst struck Agra. We then followed the directions of natives and anyone else we met until we eventually reached our

destination, incidentally seeing a great deal of Agra.

Hiring a carriage from the Hotel, we sallied

192

THE

EAGLE THE EAGLE

forth to do our shopping, but after driving aimlessly for some time we came reluctantly to the conclusion that there were no shopsThis was afterwards conﬁrmed by the Hote proprietor. Lunch being over, we drove out to renew our acquaintance with the Taj, getting back at four o’clock, as we had settled to start for home at that hour. The chauffeur in the interim had been driving the car about to see what was amiss, but needless to say she never put a foot wrong whilst there was a garage handy. So we reckoned on getting home by daylight, and from the way we started we

thought that our confidence was not misplaced. Eertainly we had to stop on the Railway bridge to avoid some carts, but this was no excuse for the exhibition of temper the car treated us to. At the bottom of the bridge she stopped (4-10 P M.) started (4»15 PM) stopped 4-20 RM to 4-301’.M.; then moved nearly a hundred yards; jibbed for two minutes, and then sprinted a full fifty yards. After a little humouring she took it into her hand to go as if she had never done anything wrong in her life. The fifth milestone, and Akbar‘s massive

tomb

Sikandar

were

passed,

and

three more miles slipped by. “She's shut» ting up” said the chauffeur—“like a teles. cope” echoed the sepulchral tones of the owner. And she did. Lower sank the sun ;

out it went, the shades of night were falling fast, and there seemed every prospect of us passing the night where we were. Expert and amateur were heat. They owned it. Even the admiring crowd of naked babies were showing signs of ﬂagging interest, and were deserting us. Arumble of wheels, the tinkle of a bell, and by all that’s opportune an ekka ! At the

were easily persuaded to let me drive my wife as far as the Sikandar, where there is

station.

Indeed I fancy they were pleased at

the opportunityol’stretchingtheirlegs. I know we were at the end of our three mile drive. On arriving we found three grw‘is standing outside Akbar's tomb. This seemed peculiar, and we thought it fortunate, until we dis. covered they belonged to a party who were having dinner at the Dak Bungalow in the garden of the tomb. Having no other means 0f getting on to Agra, as the «It-lea had now gone

Mr. Miles,

Warburton, 1.0.8., 1; Major Moorhead, I.M.S., '2 ; Major Cruickshank, RE, 3 ; Mr. H. Mansﬁeld, R.H.A., back. The umpires were

to whom we can never be sufﬁciently grateful, as they lent us one of their gariv and we drove into Agra station. Arriving there, at 7—45 PM , we found there

was no train until 10-15 RM. there was no good at the station, told they never came there at ever, one drove up at that very

and further and we were night. Howmoment and

we were able to drive to the Hotel and get dinner. We did not forget to bring food and drink for our friends on the roadside, and at

every station we looked out, expecting to see them On arrival at Muttra at 1A. M. we were greeted with the news that directly we had left the car, she showed signs of exerting herself, and suddenly starting off, brought her owner into Muttra by 7-45 BM, in time for dinner ! We can only suppose that one of us was the evil genius in the car.

-‘ Ansrn JAo ”

The following two accounts of The games in the Cup “ Week" tournament in which our team played, are taken from the Pionec;

and The Asian respectively :7—~

“Despite the early hour ﬁxed for the ﬁrst

further games in the ﬁrst ties in the polo

Babus

tournament for the Royal

Dragoons’ Cup.

back.

Lucknow

Gymkhana: Mr.

Captain Barrett, A. D. 0, and Mr. Railston,

seemed imminent, but a, scrimmage ensued near the flags and the ball was driven back. Shortly the Royals pressed in the Gymkhana‘s ground and Turner sent the ball through. Score ; Royals, seven goals. Fourth Ohulcker :——-Uneventful play all over the ground till the Gymkhana began pressing. Cruickshank from the side of the ground sent a hot shot through. On change of ends the Gymkhana again held the ball in the Royals’ end till Mansfield by a good shot scored. The Gymkhana yet again attacked and had two shots at the flags ere the Royals got the ball away to mid-field, when time was called. Score: Royals, seven to two,

[Fifth 0hu7clce9.—Play was level all over the ground till offside was given against the Gymkhana, but the penalty shot was unprOductive. More fast play followed in the Gymkhana’s end till Turner got on, and by ﬁne shooting scored Score: Royals, eight goals to two.

Rifle Brigade. Details :— Fl‘rsc Chairman—The Royals got possession at the start and detained the ball in the Gymkhana ground where, after being foiled three times, Turner scored. On change of ends the Gymkhana ran the ball to the flags, but it was rescued ere it reacted the goal, and was driven back to mid-field. Later on Miles carried the ball along against opposition, but his final shot missed the goal. Score : Royals, one goal. Second (.hulclcer.— Play started on the far side of mid—field, and Turner getting on had a run to the flags and scored. On change of ends play was confined in the Gymkhana’s

and Barrett

ground until Turner again had a run to the

end where they pressed.

ﬂags and scored.

Play up and down the

ground continued till FitzGerald from the side of

POLO AT LUCKNOW.

had always wanted aride on an eklca. The two

Colonel, who was present. The teams were constituted as follows :— The Royal Dragoons : MLWilson-F‘itz Gerald, 1; Mr. Turner, 2; Captain Tomkinson, 3 ;

back for the Babus, we had to go and interview

moment I think we should have welcomed anything,——even aﬂying machine. My wife craving is now satisﬁed.

display could not have failed to delight their

the diners, a party of soldiers and civilians,

game to-day, there was avery large gathering assembled in the pavilion to witness two

The

1n the opening game the Royal Dragoons were opposed to a scratch team, which lacked organisation. The ﬁne strong play of their back failed to elicit due response from his forwards. The Royals, splendidly mounted with perfect combination and ever sure on the ball, played an admirable game, and their

193

Sixth {cli.zlcker.---From the throw-in play continued all over the ground, both ends being visited without any result. The Royals wpn by*eight*goals itto two. i

‘X'

Semi—ﬁnal game between the Scouts and the Royal Dragoons :— “The umpires were Colonel DeLisle and Major Crawley. first Ulmlcker—The Scouts at once got :01)

took the ball to

the Royals‘

In saving their

goal, the Royals hit behind. Barrett took the penalty shot, which was met near the

the Gymkhana’s ground by a long

ﬂags and the ball driven out to mid-ﬁeld and

From the throw—in Miles got a

across to the Scouts' end. The Royals press. ed and eventually got a penalty shot for a. foil], This also was stoped and play was carried to mid-ﬁeld, where vigorous and fast play‘ proceeded, till Hoare’s shot sent the ball out; behind the Royals’ ground. No score. Second Chukker.—The Royals brought the ball into play'and got it near mid-ﬁeld. There after the ball travelled freely all over the ground. (The goals when threatened Were

shot scored.

run and a by a long shot scored. Score: Royals, ﬁve goals. Third Chukker.~—Play opened at the side of mid-ﬁeld and the Royals held the ball in the Gymkhana’s ground, where they had three 'or four runs to the flags. Then Tomkinson,

gettinga clear opening, had a shot at the ﬂags and scored.

From the._throw in the

Giymkhana ran the ballto the ﬂags and score

194:

'1‘ H E

EAGLE

THE

EAGLE

welldefended and, a ﬁne hard hitting and

been lately, more or less one round of work,

Instructor of

strenuous galloping chukker concluded with-

with a little relaxation over the evening

Horse.

out any score.

All friends of “Tommy" Dight will be sorry to learn that his younger son, Walter, died in the station hospital last week. F.Q.M.S. and M rs. Diglit have our sympathy in their loss. Promotion has brought Corporals Wyatt, Farrell, Workman, and Pitts into the mess, and we welcome them and wish them luck. A whist drive took place in the mess last week, when a pleasant evening was spent. Mrs. Fordorn and SQ MS. Norton were the winners. On Saturday last a small and early “Practice” dance was held, and was most enjoyable. Several members have had a little mixed shooting, and bare, partridge and venison have in consequence been among the items on our bill-offare. There is nothing more for me to add, except that all members of the mess send greetings to all old friends and wish them the old, old wish “A Merry Xmas anda Bright New Year” “ SERGEANT."

the Royals’ end where the Scouts got a. free

meal, when the day’s work is reviewed, and experiences exchanged. It is when the day‘s work is over, and the tinkle of glass and china mingle not unpleasantly with the buzz of conversation that the Sergeant 10g unbend, and many are the stories and jokes that are handed round. Apropos, the following may bear repetition :— It was during our recent march from Lucknow, and the Orderly Ofﬁcer was going round the horse lines somewhere about mid-night, Having answered the challenge of asentry, he approached that worthy, and inquired, as is customary, if all was correct. “Yes, sir," replied the sentry, “allexcept one hot'se—otf‘is feed.” On examining the animal indicated, it seemed pretty evident the brute was “out cf sorts” for a bulging nose-bag hung heavily from its head, and not a muscle of its jaw moved. “ How long has

hit for the Royals hitting behind, but nothing

this been

Third Chukker.—Play opened in mid-field, and the ball was soon carried into the Royals’ ground where Hoare had a shot at the flags. Later Barrett got a run to the flags and his shot struck the post and rolled out on the wrong side. Miles brought the ball in and running it to the Opposite end, a hot attack on the flags took place. Turner sent the ball through. Score: Royals, one goal. Fourth Gamma—Play was for a space in the Scouts’ ground. The ball was worked away from here and Barrett drove it well into the Royals’ end. Pollock by a clean shot scored. Score: one all. Fifth Ohnkker.—-Play opened on the border of mid-field, whence the Scouts brought the

ball to the Royals’ end. futile shot at the ﬂags.

They had a long but Play continued at

the United

Provinces

Light

4950 Corpl. Wyatt to be Lance-Sergeant. 4772 " Farrell to be unpaid Lance-Sergeant. ‘ “ Workman “ ” “ Pitts “ “ Lce.-Corpl. Whaites to be Corporal. .. Dyer .. ..

came of it.

Later,

while

play was in the

Royals’ ground. a foul was given against the Scouts and Tomkinson taking the penalty shot, sent it through. Soon after play was in mid-ﬁeld time was call 'd. Score: Royals, two goals to one. bzxih ('hulcker.~Play soon centred in the

Royals’end, wherea‘score was averted for atime. Then Barrett from the side of the ground sent the ball straight out between the flags and brought the score level. On change of ends the Scouts again confined play to the Royals’ ground Where later Barrett, getting aclear opening, ran the ball through. The Royals soon held the ball in the Scouts’ end and had three or four runs to the flags, but the flags were well defended. The Scouts won by three goals to two. In the final TheScouts beat the 17th Lan~

by 8 goale to 3.

SERGEANT’S—NTESS NOTES. There is little of note to write of just-now incouneetion witlithe mess. Life is, and has:

questioned

the ofticer,

as he forced his hand down between murzle and bag. “About two hours, Sir, and he hasn’t made an attempt to eat is feed." “And no wonder!” snapped the ofﬁcer as he pulled the bag oﬁand spilled the contents at the sentry's feet—a horse-brush and comb, and several other sundries of grooming kit! It was the “spare” nose-bag which had evidently been fastened on the unfortunate animal by mistake.

Already a number of Christmas Cards from other corps, and from old friends have reached us, and there are other indications of the coming festival. Among the com<

munications from England, is one inviting us all to attend the marriage ceremony of

5232 Pic, Hallord extended to complete 12 years wlth the colours. 3039 Sergt. Williams proceeded to England and struck ott‘ the strength. n u :-

5560

.t In u u u u Lu u u H it u u u t. n it u u

Urteth

“

Newport 5710 " 5328 Corpl. Mockler 5:252 Pte. Mootc Helliwell " ' Maciarlane "

Mr. Reginald Leicester, at Barton-on-Sea. Leicester will be remembered as having been

u H u u n u is n n u nl‘ u u u u n u In u u

u n u n t: u u u u u n it u u u u ,t ‘5 u u n

”

Watts invalided and struck oft the strength.

“

Brown

Regiment. An old friend in the person of “ Dave” Greenland visitedus a few days

4921 Unpaid Lee -Sergt Elf: omas to‘be Lance-Sergeant. “ ‘ Kite “ " 5132

5694

Stalk" .

“

Miller

“ " to be unpaid Lance Corporal. (. .. t. “ “ “ “ “ “ “ “ “ “ ”

“

Emuminations(Ogle-C719.)

Lieuts. W.H.J. St. L. Atkinson and E.W.T. Miles have passed in subject“ C ” for promotion. Certiﬁcates

Lce.-Corpls. Ogley and Mackie, and Pte. Kelsey, have been awarded lst class certiﬁcates of education. Corp]. McDouall has passed in group 11. 3309 Corp]. Jones has been awarded the medal for Long

Service and Good Conduct with gratuity. Badge. 1336 Pte. Cooper granted lst Good Conduct " “ “i “ Hayden in u Young “ x u .. Davison u “ ‘I. “ Wilson “ u

~‘

Ball

‘

May

Births.

4575 Lce.-Sergt. Wisebbusou to be Sergeant. 5705 *‘ M arlln " l u H 5357 H Vanson “ ‘

“

“ " "

“ ‘ Promotions.

a member of the mess a year or two ago, and receiving his commission in the Bedford

5329

“

“ “ “

“ “ " “ " “ ” . ('arroll Purvis Groom Reynolds McIntyre Lewis Youle Hoyles Ritson Ball Addison Monkhoase Butcher Crouchcr ()gley Hutchinson Mackic

21 years 4470,85 M.R.R_ Cope re-cngaged to complete with the colours. H n u 1.375 Sergt. \Vischliusen

Ptc. Ashworth Lee-Cowl Brown Ptc. Lentz " Gibson “ Wesley Cook “ “ Leslie ” lllll “ Spicer Leadbetter “ Corp Arnold Richardson “ Mace; ” “ Bug res Lee-Corp. Wilsher Ashlord Pte.

“

Loekyer Holl‘ Foord Spicer Shackell Hoinville Bray

Fuller Ryder Davidson Blundell Jarrett Rae Meteor Macormac Hnrnnetty Broadhent Woods North Rankin Pritchard Driver Love

REGIMENTA-L-GAZETTE.

5445 5:790 5590 5605 560i 53M} 5735 5433 5635 3121 2266 5623 5210 5421 5282 5543

Parrott

“ l.

Service.

on ‘? ”

“

‘ ‘

Wi’e of Sergeant Morgan of a son. Wife of Serg: am. Farrell of a son.

, N

Deaths.

Walter, son of F.Q.M S. Dight. at the Station Hospital, Muttra.

ago, and seems to be doing well as SergeantG House, LUCKNOW. Human FOR TEE EDITOR BY W. S. MEEK AT Tan METHODIST PUBIﬂSHIN

' COMMUMUWMR, CHARACTER

PUBLIC SCHOOLS LOOK AHEAD By J. C. DANCY Headmaster of Lancing College Since the publication in 1944 of the Fleming report on The Public Schools and the General Educational System, these schools have been “ news ” in a way that they had never been before; and a bewildering variety of diverg— ent schemes for their preservation, “reform," or abolition has been pro— posed in the Press and elsewhere. More recent schemes, however, have tended to converge, and the time seems ripe in

consequence for an attempt at conSldering What the public schools are like in 1957 and what, in the national interest, they should become. in this article i shall use the term “public schoots” somewhat arbitrarily to reler to lewer than 100 independent boarding schools represented on the Headmasters' Conference. This 18 the deﬁnition adopted by Mr. C. A. R. Crosland in his recent book The Future of Socialism. in this book he says bluntly: “That these schools . . . are superior is beyond dispute. Their stafhng ratio is higher, the academic quality or the statt superior . . . their extra-

restricted to the children of the comparatively wealthy. On the latter point, it should in fairness be pointed out that the present population of the public schoots Is not quite so “ narrow " or " exclusive " as' is sometimes supposed. On the ﬁnanCial side, there is quite a number of parents who, without any capital resources, manage to send their sons to public schools on’an income of lib-£10 a week at reduced tees and on 1520-1523 a week (the wage of many a skilled worker) at tull tees. Moreover it the public scnool clientele comes irom a narrower ﬁnancial range than that of the grammar schools, it comes from a much Wider geographical area, and in its range ot intelligence induces a goon

proportion (in some cases up to go per cent.) or boys Who would otherwise be in the A-stl‘eam of secondary modern schools. But when all is said and done it remains true that at present only a

sma.l section of the community can

curricular iacmties more ample. IL is

attord this superior education; and this, most public school headmasters regard as wrong. Hence the proposals for a change;

sometimes said

that these advantages

and ot such proposals the really striking

are conﬁned to some thirty or so or the mayor public schoo.s and that the

ieature 15 the close resemblance they bear, in all but one respect, not only to eacn other but to Scneme B or the Fleming report. Brieily, this scheme proposed that the public schools would set aSide in the ﬁrst instance a minimum or 25 per cent. of their places tor boys (known as “ bursars ”) Whose tees were to be paid out or public tunds; such boys would be chosen at ll, go to a recognized preparatory school tor two years, and then Join their public sch00is .l 13, 'l he public schools wourd accept on to their governing bodies representa—

remainder are in no way educationally

superior to good grammar schoots.

doubt this."

LIFE TOGETHER It is signiﬁcant that, in giving his reasons for this estimate, Mr. (,rosland omits what many ot us regard as the distinctive feature or those schoors, namely the nature of the community tile in

boarding-school.

Now it is

incontrovertible that a boarding—school duets greater opportunities tor the trainihg UL Character than a day scnooi; but it must also be shown that the train— ing given is 0]. a desirable kind. What then are the qualities or character that the puoiic schools are seeking to develop '! I corinne myself to mentioning one, which includes most or the others, namely (,Dl‘lSllal‘l leadership. 1 call it Chinstlan in order to distinguish it expliCiliy irom another type or leader-

ship, the Shghtly smug and patl'oan: irig

independence in the legal and in the Wider sense, particularly in the matter or their religious tradition, As to the criteria of cnotce of " bursars,” ' the Fleming report places ﬁrst the Wishes of parents, mentions next a minimum academic ability, and thirdly discusses the cardinal but admittedly vague criterion of "suitability tor boarding education.”

" ho-doaouottt-we-are-ti'ie-peopie ’

amiude wntcn used sometimes to be round in the pUDllC schools numb the rust War. christian leadership, on the other hand, is essentially uh—seit-cehtred. it rests on Him touhdanons: hrst a sense or scrvtce, wnlcn includes the acceptance

or diSCipiine Without resentment and a general readiness to put community betore sell ; secondly a sense oi responsi-

bility, wnicn combines an imaginative concern tor those in one’s care With the

tives ol the authority paying the tees or the “ bursars,” but would retain their

courage

take

support

declSlOiis which, though right, may be unpopular.

take an instance,

the

protect Whom we value most is not the uncreht organizer or the ruthless poticeman but the one Who, ooservmg a youngster looking uownhearteu, uhootrusivcly ﬁnds the cause ot the trouble, puts it right and ensures that it Will not recur, and then it" necessary reports the matter to authority. And, as the late BiShop or Peteroorough used to say, the proudest boast of the public schools is not their tew outstandingly brilliant and successtul products, but the many good men, in the protessions and 1h itidusti y, doing their duty in that state oi lite to which it has pleased God to call them.

WIDER ENTRY The Fleming report was accepted immediately by the Headmasters: Lon— rerence, and almost all public schools ottered places tor " bursars‘ ” to various local education authorities. But the local authorities, for one reason or another, did not take them up; and it is now generally agreed that, it' the report is to be carried out, the cost will have to be borne from central govern« ment tuhds. Thus amended, it can be said that the Fleming proposals are now supported not merely by the Headniasters' Conterence and the Incor— porated

Assoualton

Preparatory

ochools but also by moderate opinion in both political parties#with one exception. This exception is the demand bySocialist thinkers for a “ decisive majority" (Mr. Michael Stewart) or even tor 75 per cent. tivir. Croslahd) ot'

" bursars.” On this issue I venture one comment. The really vital ﬁgure in a boarding school is the percentage of what are loosely called “proolem children"— i.e., those Who come from unstable homes or are otherwise maiadjusted. it there were some guarantee that this per-

centage could be kept severely within

CHRISTIAN BASIS This Will no doubt seem to be sentimental speciosity to those who either do not know or are not willing to take seriously the Christian character of these

schools.

Unfortunately the defenders

of the public schools have otteh contented themselves with mentioning the fact that most of them are speclilcaliy Christian (usually (.hurch 01 England) foundations, and have been shy of stresstng that this a.legiance is no mere formality but provides an explicit and overriding objective, constantly held in mind by the majority of headmasters

and their staffs. Once this is understood, the egalitarian objection to leadership

such

seen

irrelevant. If therefore we can claim for the public schools that they possess unrivalled opportunities for developing the highest qualities of intellect and character, what follows? First, that

the country cannot atford todispense with them; but secondly, that it is wrong that entry to them should be

BILINGUAL CHILDREN __...__

bounds (5 per cent. is the absolute maximum one could deal with), there would be room for experiment With‘the proportion of “ bursars.” For this proportion is not a matter which can uset'tilly be settled on a priori grounds. if the object of the exercise is to make available to a much wider public the merits of the public schools, it would be the height of folly to destroy those very merits in the process by trying to rush one’s fences. At present much of what the ptiblic schools can achieve is due to the fact that most of their boys

come from homes in which there is already a high sense of service and responsibility. There is a limit beyond which if you alter the mixture you lose the savour; to ﬁnd that limit without overstepping it requires the greatest possible circumspection. Changes, there-

fore; must be planned with dispatch but executed with caution, supervised with

sympathy but ﬁnally assessed without prejudice. if that is how they are managed, I believe the public schools will welcome them unreservedly.

WORKING INSTRUCTIONS

ELCilN HILLS (Grimm CA WNPORE.

SPECIFICATION. Ln, 001., FJ.

Anderson’s

Pattern of Field Service Tent

size 7g’xél—fl”x6’ high, walls 25 high attached to fly, open at four

corners

with Brass Eyelets and Cord loops

to lace if required;

each corner supported by Bamboo poles; tent pitched on one Joint—ed pole only in front and overlapping Curtains in front ﬁtted with Brass‘eyelets and cordlloops, made of a single fold of country dyed

khaki drill throughout, weight 24 ”as price Rs. 80.

ELGIN MLLLS CA WNF’ORE. MM Pf-

30 lb. Light Marching Tent. Single Hygmznt size; 6} x (5/ x (3’; high \vithunt wall7 ﬂy extended to the gi'rmml—gronml >heet attached thereto 6 inches high at front and back similar

ti) walls, so that rain may not enter tent pnnluhs at hoth ends for opening or (:h‘).~:iiig‘ hy means: «if hrass'eyelets and cord loops; mmle of a Single fold of Khaki \Vaterpronl‘ Canvas thmuuhont; there is an arrangement for bedding in the sheet

aml the tent is pitt-hetl ()nly by 2 sets of jointed CPOSS poles with rope ridge anti 8 iron pegs, A Canvas bag to pack the tent in, with full complement of pegs, hammer and poles accompanies: each tent Price Rs. 42.

Weight 30 lb.

Detachable hathr<mm7 triangular shape, of same material RS. 12 weight 5 lb. open at back and with arrangements for lacing up when necessary.

BEGIN MLLLS CQMPANY, CAWN POREt

\Speciﬁcation/

Single Fly with Bath Room.

Double Fly with Bath Room.

Double Fly Manoeuvre Tent 7'x6’x6é high of similar pattern to Ofﬁcers 80-lb. Light Field Service Tent, walls 2’ high attached to Inner Fly, open at front and back, with brass eyelet Cord loops, pockets and rope for hanging clothes, with detachable

Bathroom. Jointed Bamboo poles, complete with pegs, mallet, and Saleetah, weight without Bathroom 40 lbs., weight of Bathroom 5 lbs. Tent White Drill

Country Dyed Khaki

Bathroom o

,, 10

Rs, 7

‘. 53

English Fast dyed Khaki Millerain Khaki

,, 12

Green or Khaki Waterproof Canvas

,. 15

Similar Size and Pattern Single Fly Tent with detachable Bathroom, Weight. 40 lbs. Tent. White Drill Country Dyed Khaki

. 38

.. ..

English Fast Dyed Khaki

Bathroom. Rs. 7 n

Millerain Khaki

n 12

Green or Khaki Waterproof Canvas

n I5

We have given the lowest weight to which the tent can be reduced with Double ﬂy z'.e. 45 lbs. This is in excess of the Scale allowed, but some oﬁicers may prefer

to use the Double Fly and dispense with the bathroom, and so reduce the weight to regulation limit.